GenXr7
by Creator2005
Summary: (Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago or anything, this is for fun) Hundreds of years after the ninjas rose and defended Ninjago, Ninjago is a new and more advanced place. However, a new evil threatens Ninjago, and only a few can stop it. Will they be able to work together? Or die trying? (TRIGGER WARNING) (ABUSE AND VIOLENCE MENTIONED) (MAYBE UNCOMFORTABLE FOR SOME READERS) (HIATUS)
1. Prologue

(No P.O.V.)

The wind blew softly across New Ninjago City. Not a single speck of dirt landed anywhere on the polished metal walls of the grand city.

—

A teenage boy was running. A person, or creature perhaps, was hunting him down. Why? Mainly because of his 'unique' abilities that made him so popular with his history teacher, Miss Alais.

The boy shot a burst of wind towards his pursuer's face, momentarily slowing the creature down.

He Airjitzu onto a nearby balcony of a penthouse and smashed the door to get in. A woman's voice could have been heard as he crashed about inside.

The escape was actually useless because the creature could teleport.

"Shit," the boy whispered underneath his breath as he did Spinjitzu to slow his fall after he jumped out a window.

That didn't work very well.

"Fuck..." the boy groaned as he landed harshly on a garbage bin.

"Nowhere to run, master of wind." The creature spat in the boy's face.

"What? I'm not the master of wind, I have the element of... SURPRISE!" The boy yelled, jumping up and doing a spinning hook kick into the creature's face. Unfortunately, the creature caught the boy's foot in mid-air.

"End of the line for you, elemental scum." The creature spat in the boy's face before stabbing him in the heart with a Vengestone blade.

—

"Breaking news! A teenage boy was found dead in an alley with mysterious wounds covering his whole body. Further investigation led scientists to believe that this boy was a descendant of the elemental master of wind, known as Morro, who destroy the city of Styx exactly one hundred years ago. We will have more information about this tragedy tonight at 7:30 pm on Ninjago News." The announcer said with a fake smile plastered across her old face.

A creature threw something heavily at the tv as an ad came on.

"Calm down, it was just one new story. Also, the ratings of elemental powers have dropped down to basically zero so no one ever believes it." The creature's master reassured it.

"How can you be sure?" The creature hissed, "There could be a new elemental group being formed as we speak! Like those bastard ninjas!"

"We can always recruit the Stone Army or a couple of stray Serpentine," the master stated

"Haven't you heard? The Serpentine has been slowly gaining elemental abilities, which would make them much more dangerous! And the Helmet of Shadows was destroyed after Garmadon was sent to jail," the creature replied.

"Hmm... let's just keep on killing these elemental masters, I'll think of something." The master suggested.

"But-"

"Don't argue with me, or I'll scrap you for parts." The master sneered, his calm demeanour taking a dark turn.


	2. New Beginnnings

(Mika's P.O.V.)

"Mika Takahashi! What did I tell you about eating potstickers in the library?" My annoying librarian yelled at me.

"Um... you said not to eat them while reading the ancient newspaper articles?"

"GET OUT!"

I begrudgingly grabbed my food and left the library, sneaking out three newspapers and one book.

As I exited the library, I received a text message from my mom.

**Mom: GET HOME NOW! Emergency **?

**Me: What? Why? **?

**Mom: Just gEt HoMe!**

Oh god, I hope she isn't freaking out about losing the TV remote again, cause that's not worth my time.

—

When I came home, there was an old woman standing in my living room sipping a cup of tea.

"Um... hi?" I greeted uncomfortably.

"Oh sweetie, you're home. So this is the emergency I was telling you about. This is Master Jun, she now runs her ancestor's friend's monastery." My mom stated.

"This is the emergency?"

"I might've over exaggerated a bit but still, this could help you! Remember that news story we saw about the wind master's descendant? I just want to make sure you're safe." My mom pleaded with me.

"How about you let me talk to Mike alone?" Master Jun suggested to my mom.

My mom nodded in agreement before heading into the kitchen to make some food probably.

"How'd you know I was related to Nya, the master of water?" I inquired.

"I kept records of ALL the descendants of the past elemental masters. Anyway, I'm directly related to the master of smoke, but I don't have any abilities besides Spinjitzu and Airjitzu." Master Jun said.

"Okay, why do you want me?"

"I'm assembling a team to defeat this creature who has been wreaking havoc and killing elemental masters... and I want you on my team." Master Jun explained.

(Mack's P.O.V.)

"FUCK YOU GERALD!" I yelled at the show-off.

"Mack Arian! A five-minute penalty for yelling obscenities at your team captain." My coach, Brasker, ordered me.

I plopped myself aggressively against the bench and watched my team practice several more dribbling drills.

"Nice job boys, head out for the night!" Brasker ordered us.

After everyone left, I began doing some layups in anger.

"Fuck Brasker, fuck Gerald, fuck them all!" I mumbled, chucking a ball angrily at the bleachers behind me. Oddly enough, I didn't hear it hit anything. I turned around to see an elderly lady spinning the basketball on her finger expertly.

"Who are you?" I spat.

"A person who has a challenge for you." She replied before walking down from the bleachers.

"What?"

"If I beat you at a one-on-one, you have to come with me and help me. If I lose, you can leave and you'll never see me again." The lady suggested calmly.

"I don't play old people. And I don't wanna get benched for a year because I injured you." I stated.

"You think you'll lose to an old bat?" The lady challenged.

"No, I'll beat you. Let's go," I replied.

I let her start with the ball in front of me. She dribbled a bit before running around me. I ran after her, effectively blocking her.

"Old tricks won't fool me, grandma." I insulted her.

"Oh really? How about-" She began before spinning around on her heel and expertly shooting the ball from the three-point line.

That's when I finally realized I was fucked. She kept on shooting the ball in the hoop, twenty times after. I, however, did not take defeat graciously.

"How the fuck did you do that?" I exclaimed in anger.

"I'll teach you much more valuable things than basketball. Just follow me." The lady said, turning around and walking to the gym's exit.

"Are you trying to get laid? 'Cause your prime age is long gone!" I called back before grabbing my bag and jogging after her.

"I already talked to your parents about your... unique gifts." The lady explained, not even slowing down or turning back to face me.

"What gifts? And who are you?"

"You've heard of the ninjas, haven't you? I'm Master Jun, and I plan to make you like one of them."

(Ingrid's P.O.V.)

I felt overwhelming pain go through me as I continued to make the long cuts across my arms. _Fuck my life, fuck my dad, fuck my school, fuck the entire shitty world! _I thought as I started to cry.

"Where are you Ingrid Lee, my people wallflower?" My dad asked seductively from outside my bathroom door.

He's been raping me since I was five, I never had the courage to tell anyone, they probably wouldn't care still. I could probably have multiple STDs by now, or I could be pregnant for all I know.

"C'mon my waterlily, let's have some fun..."

I moaned in pain when I pushed the knife against my bone and collapsed.

"Found you my little beaver." My dad said, unlocking the bathroom door.

Then I hear tons of screaming and punching. I removed the knife from my arm and placed a white towel over the wound. I wrapped it tightly around the deep cut before poking my head out the door a bit.

Outside was my dad lying unconscious on the ground with an elderly woman standing in a fighting position over him.

"C'mon Ingrid, the police are coming over. Let's get you out of here." The woman said before grabbing my uncut arm and dragging me with her out of my apartment.

I didn't fight back at all, if someone was taking my dad to jail, I'm happy. His has been raping me every night ever since my mom died, I heard losing someone makes you crazy, but I never could have imagined this.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Master Jun, I'm a descendant of an elemental master, like you. Your mother was an elemental master but died because she couldn't control her powers. Her powers burned her inside out, but the doctors thought she had Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, a.k.a. TENS. I want to help you control your powers before you die." The woman, Master Jun, explained as we sat in a posh hover car.

"So, I have the elemental power of..." I began, not being to think easily because of the lack of sleep I had because of my dad.

"Fire, but first I'm taking you to a hospital before going to the monastery. I want to make sure you're okay before doing any training." Master Jun replied.

"No... that's okay, it doesn't matter if I'm okay..." I mumbled, looking at the ground.

"Ingrid, you're not alone, people can be picked off the street and raped anywhere in Ninjago, it doesn't matter if you're rich or not, you can still be hurt. I may not be going through the same things as you, but I still care about you, and I'm gonna try my hardest to understand what you going through. And, 'do not put off until tomorrow what can be done today'." Master Jun quoted at the end.

"Ohmygod, you actually made a joke about Master Wu!" I laughed lightheartedly.

"Hey, I thought you didn't know anything about the ninjas."

"Every school teaches you the lessons of Master Wu and the ninjas, like 'as iron sharpens iron, brother sharpens brother'." I quoted with a small grin.

(Ian' P.O.V.)

"Jeez! I'm sorry!" I yelled at the comic store owner.

"How many times must I tell you this Ian Flores until this gets in your head, YOU CAN'T TOUCH THE GREEN NINJA'S COMIC BOOK COLLECTION!" The comic store owner yelled at me before slamming the door against my face.

"Told ya, bro, you can't touch Lloyd's books." My little sister Ximena said to me, licking a lollipop as she leaned against the windows of the store.

"Hey! What did mom and I say about you going outside alone? You could get kidnapped!" I exclaimed in worry.

"Don't worry bro, I'm like thirteen now, only three years younger than you," Ximena stated before standing up properly and walking towards the candy store.

"Hey! Did you know the Golden Master, a.k.a. the Green Ninja, a.k.a. Lloyd Garmadon loved candy too? Maybe we're his descendant!" I guessed wishfully.

"Seriously, you're obsessed with him."

"Actually, I love all the ninjas equally. I know Cole loves food, Jay loves machines, Zane's a nindroid, Kai can't make a metal sword if his life depended on it, Lloyd's father became evil twice, and Nya almost married the djin Nadakhan." I replied matter-of-factly.

"There's my point exactly. This is why mom is depending on me to give her grandchildren because no girl wants to be near a chatterbox like you." Ximena pointed out.

"I'm sure there's at least one girl out there who loves ninjas as much as me," I stated proudly.

"Yeah, you're right, you're as annoying as Jay Walker." My sister spat in my face before going into the candy shop.

"Ian? Have you seen your sister? I've been looking for her for hours." My mother told me worriedly, running over to me with her phone in hand.

I pointed at the candy store.

"Jeez, she's gonna get hurt one of these times. Anyway, I was given a call by an elderly lady who wants you. She said she runs an amazing boarding school. She said to meet her at a cafe by the Borg Tower. Please go, I think it'll be good for you." My mother urged me before running into the candy store.

—

"Hello ma'am, my mother told me to meet you at table nine?" I asked the older woman as she sat across from me.

"Yes, you're Ian Flores... correct?" She replied.

"Yes, ma'am. My mother told me you run a boarding school?" I inquired.

"Actually, I'm here to bring you to a monastery to study the art of Spinjitzu." The woman stated.

"EXCUSE ME? ARE YOU SERIOUS?" I gasped loudly which caused everyone to stare at me.

"Yes, you're the elemental master of the mind. Your mother is overprotective as I can see, so that's why I didn't tell her the truth. Hopefully, you'll accept my offer." The woman stated.

"Yes! I'll love too! I've always dreamed of becoming a ninja!" I exclaimed in joy.

"Good, your mother assumed that you would do it for her so she already packed your bags as I requested. Everything you need and probably wants is in my car. However, before we head to the monastery, I need to stop by the hospital to pick up another one of your teammates."

"What? Did something happen to them?" I instantly became worried.

"Well, you heard about the rapist on the news, correct? That was her father." The woman explained.

"Oh... I feel bad for her now. I have a little sister who constantly takes risks and could get hurt as she did. I'll go with you." I said.

The woman smiled before leading me to her car parked out front.

"So, what's your name?" I inquired.

"I'm Master Jun," she replied.

—

"Hi, I'm Ian." I introduced myself to the girl who just sat down in the backseat of Master Jun's car.

"Um... hi, I'm Ingrid." She replied nervously.

"Do you mind me asking what happened with the doctors?" I inquired.

"Um, the doctors said I'm fine but I should stop using my left arm because I got a pretty deep cut," Ingrid explained.

"Ohh... well I hope you get well soon," I replied with a smile.

(Zoltar's P.O.V.)

"Son, how many timessss have I told you, usssse your powerssss properly." My Venomari father stated with the shake of his head.

"Sorry father," I stated, looking down.

"You're a dessssscendant of the elemental master of earth and of the great Venomari tribe, do you believe that Masssster Jun would recruit a Serpentine with no control?" My father inquired.

"No father..." I mumbled before practicing my powers once more.

I spun backwards on my legs and punched the earth afterwards in an attempt to create an earthquake. Nothing happened.

"Nice try Zoltar." I heard someone say.

I turn around and saw Master Jun with a smile.

"Greetingsss Masssster Jun, welcome to the city of Ouroborossss." My father greeted the elemental master.

"Hello King Apophis, I'm here to bring your son to the monastery." Master Jun explained with a warm smile.

"Do the other teammatesss know I'm a snake?" I inquired curiously.

"No, but they should welcome you the same, nonetheless." Master Jun replied before leading me outside.

I waved to my father goodbye before grabbing my knapsack and running to Master Jun. We quickly walked to her jeep, which was parked outside of Ouroboros.

"Are you nervous Zoltar?" She inquired as she started her engine.

"A bit... what if the othersss make fun of me?" I wondered worriedly.

"It doesn't matter, you're the master of earth and one of them from now on. I care very little about what race you are, I only care about keeping you guys safe." Master Jun explained.

"But what if-"

"What if there were no more what ifs?" She replied, looking at me skeptically.

"I jussssst don't want to dissssapoint my father," I mumbled, looking at the ground sadly.

"You're one of the few earth elementals left, and I know your father prizes rare things. There hasn't been an Earth elemental since Cole the black ninja had a daughter!" Master Jun exclaimed.

"Yes... and his daughter had grandchildren who married Venomari leadersssss, who didn't receive any powerssss," I replied quietly.

"That is correct, so first I must buy food for the rest of your team. Afterwards, I'll drop you off with them. The next couple of days you'll practice going through the obstacle course until I get the rest of your team." Master Jun elaborated.

(Shima's P.O.V.)

"Shima Song, what is the answer to, 'In triangle ABC, the measure of ∠B is 90°, BC=16, and AC=20. Triangle DEF is similar to triangle ABC, where vertices D, E, and F correspond to vertices A, B, and C, respectively, and each side of triangle DEF is 1/3 the length of the corresponding side of triangle ABC. What is the value of sinF?" The math announcer asked me.

"3/5, or 0.6," I replied with ease.

"Congratulations, you just answered the last question to the Ninjago National Math Competition correctly!" The announcer congratulated me.

Streamers started flying everywhere as confetti was blown down from the top of the stage. A lady in a very revealing dress walked onto the stage with a large trophy with my name engraved in it. Figures, they knew I was gonna win no matter what. I was the smartest kid in the school and a famous math prodigy.

"Thanks," I said with a fake smile as the lady gave me the trophy.

Afterwards, I walked off the stage quickly before throwing the trophy at my lackey.

"That was amazing Shima! You're soooooooo good at math! I wish I was as smart as you..." Shelbee Sarton sighed, my practically useless lackey.

"Just get my car out front, I'm gonna head to the washroom. And when I get home get my maid to make me a salad, hold the dressing. I'll meet you in the car." I spat at her before turning around and whipping my ponytail in her face.

"Um... your parents took their car to Jamanakai for a business meeting earlier," Shelbee told me.

"Then get me a car," I replied before entering the washroom.

Inside the washroom was an elderly lady staring at me.

"What do you want?" I asked before entering a stall.

"You're Shima Song, I was looking for you." The lady stated.

After I finished doing my business, I walked outside to wash my hands.

"Why? You wanna congratulate me on winning the competition? 'Cause I don't give a damn what a lady from three hundred years ago got to say." I spat, drying my hands.

"You heard of the elemental masters? Well, you're one of them." The lady said bluntly.

"Yeah, and my parents are poor and I'm an idiot." I retorted sarcastically.

"I expected you not to believe me. Society has evolved so much that barely anyone believes in magic anymore except for historians." The lady replied.

"Well, I have to go. If all you gotta say to me is I'm like a wizard or some shit, I'm out." I stated before pushing the door open.

"Wait! If you don't believe me then it wouldn't kill you to visit my monastery, would it?" The lady inquired.

"It's beneath me to listen to old people." I exited the washroom and walked briskly to a black sleek convertible in front of the building.

"Hi Shima, are you okay? You took an awfully long time in the washroom." Shelbee asked me worriedly.

"I'm fine, just drive me back to the estate," I stated harshly.

_How nuts was that woman? Did she smoke shit before? Like seriously, elemental powers don't exist. Anyway, I don't see a point in me training or anything, I'm already famous for my brilliant mind._

"We're here," Shelbee said as we parked the car in my garage.

_Huh? How'd I get home so quickly? Did I like zone out?_

I walked out of the car briskly before entering my house.

"Get me a salad Shelbee, hold the dressing," I ordered her before heading upstairs to my room.

Once in my room, I stripped off my clothes and changed into my pyjamas.

"Here's your salad Shima," Shelbee stated, handing me the salad in my room.

"Redo the salad! I said HOLD the dressing! Not layer it on thickly! I don't want to become a fat bum like you or Nadia... GET OUT!" I yelled at her, throwing the salad right back at her.

Nadia was my good for nothing older sister. She wasn't smart, she wasn't pretty, and she wasn't skinny! Like she was majorly fat that made her twelve times the ugly. She moved away last year to live in Ouroboros to study Serpentine life, what a hoe.

—

"Morning sweetie." My mom greeted me when I woke up.

"What mom? You want me to practice my long division in my head again?" I spat in anger.

"No... and you shouldn't be rude to the one who gave birth to you!" My mom retorted, "Anyway, a nice lady told me she thinks you're perfect for her team."

"What kind of team?"

"Well, she's a person who's recruiting all the elemental-"

"Fuck no! I can't believe you believe that bitch's lunatic ideas!" I exclaimed.

"Shima Song! Watch your tone when addressing your mother! You are joining the team whether you believe in it or not! Do you know what a person is doing to elemental masters? They're killing them! I want to protect you! I love you, I only want what is best for you." My mom yelled at me, beginning to cry.

"Sheesh mom, don't be so dramatic," I stated with an eye roll.

"You know why your father and I went to Jamanakai? Your sister was found DEAD there with burns all over her body! She was an elemental master, that's why she went to live with the Serpentine so she could learn to use her powers!" My mom said before crying completely.

Now that actually shocked me. It made sense though, she was always weird and was never comfortable in large groups.

"Fine, I'll go with this strange lady," I grumbled.

My mom smiled when I finally agreed. She wiped her tears before leaving the room to probably make arrangements with my father and Shelbee.

I grabbed an old backpack and stuffed some clothes and other essentials in it before throwing it outside my room.

(Carlos' P.O.V.)

I smiled at the camera as the paparazzi took a hundred more photos.

"That's enough flash photography for Mr. Carlos Ramos!" My security guard yelled at the large crowd forming around my hotel.

"C'mon Mikel, like one more photo?" I pleaded with him.

He picked me up and swung me over the shoulder before carrying me into the hotel. Let's say, I wasn't amused.

"Carlos, darling! How's my favourite millionaire son?" My mother asked me, kissing me on the cheek when I entered the hotel's lobby and was placed on the ground once more.

"A little flustered but that's all," I mumbled.

"Louder honey! A movie star like yourself must be able to project your voice across a room with ease!" My mother stated with a huge white smile.

"How was surgery?" I inquired.

"Plastic was fantastic! I now look young enough to be your sister!" She exclaimed before walking with me to the elevator.

I nodded as I leaned uncomfortably against the railing in the elevator.

I've been starring in movies since I was basically born, acting as criminals and teenage spies.

"No! I said to deliver _FRESH _caviar to our room!" My mother complained to a maid as we went into our suite.

"I'm sorry ma'am, we just-" the maid began before my mother rudely interrupted her.

"How dare you call me ma'am! I shall be called Miss Ramos ONLY!" My mother spat in the nervous maid's face.

"I'm s-s-sorry Miss Ramos." The maid stated before scurrying out of our room, carrying the caviar.

"Mother, don't you think you were a little hard on her? She was only trying." I said.

"Nonsense! She was a spoiled brat and I just exploited her. She was a bastard's child with no sense of style! Did you see her outfit? Black and white are totally forty minutes ago, gold and silver is in." My mother argued before whipping her auburn hair into my face and walking into her room.

"You're so lucky Mikel to have grown up without a mother like that," I mumbled before entering my room.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," Mikel replied before shutting the door behind me.

I ripped my outfit off and got on some dark grey pyjamas before flopping onto my king sized bed.

I was about to fall asleep until I heard a ringing noise. I turned my head and saw my phone vibrating.

"Answer," I ordered my phone.

My phone lit up and a hologram of my 'girlfriend' showed up. When I mean 'girlfriend', I mean a girl my mother made me date because it would 'boost my status'.

"Hey, Carlos! How are you enjoying New Ninjago City? Don't you absolutely love it?" Sora Yang asked me, the 'gf'.

"Yeah, it's nice. I saw a cool looking arcade I could go too."

"Eww, gross. Only nerds and losers like that stuff." Sora stated with a disgusted look on her face, "That'll ruin your reputation. Anyway, your mother would never let you go somewhere like that."

"I know..." I mumbled tiredly.

"Anywho! I got this fab new nail polish made from like silk..." Sora blabbed on and on even though I fell asleep.

—

"Carlos? You awake?" I heard someone question me.

I opened my eyes tiredly and saw a woman standing in my room beside my security guard.

"Who are you?" I asked her groggily, sitting up.

"I'm Master Jun, an old friend of Mikel." The lady introduced herself.

"Um... why are you here?" I inquired uncomfortably.

"I'm here to talk to your mother to let you join a team. Not a sports or movie team, but a ninja team." Master Jun responded.

"Um... sure? But will my mother allow it?" I asked her skeptically.

The main reason I said yes is to get away from this life. I may be living the dream but it's so stressful dealing with the press and other rising stars, sometimes I just can't handle it. It might be more dangerous, and I might get more backlash, but at least it'll be more fun. Fake adventures are boring, the real ones are always interesting.

"Who are you? MIKEL! Why did you let this stranger in without my consent?" My mother yelled at my guard.

"I trust her. And she wants to talk to you about a proposition... regarding your son." Mikel explained.

"If you want to hire him, you have to go through with my agent, Derek Kawasaki. He's the number one in the business." My mother exclaimed.

"No, I want to recruit him on to a team-"

"He doesn't do competitive sports unless he's sponsored." My mother interrupted.

"No, I want him to join a group of-"

"He can't be on any bachelor shows, the government won't let me. And he can't be in any films or productions without at least three stunt devils." My mother added on.

"GOODNESS! YOUR SON IS AN ELEMENTAL MASTER! I WANT HIM ON MY TEAM!" Master Jun yelled at my mother.

"There's no need for that tone." My mother scoffed.

"Oh really? You've been interrupting-"

"Here's another thing, all of Mikel's friends are weirdos/losers. You don't even deserve to be in my presence, nonetheless my son."

"I just need a yes or no." Master Jun pleaded with my unbearable mother.

"My son is a Ninjago known actor, not some stuntman for your charity about dead kids." My mother spat at her before flicking her wrist to signal her to leave.

"You don't even consult me?" I asked her once Master Jun left.

"You don't know what's best for you, you're just an innocent child." My mother said before patting me on the shoulder.

"So, I can't make any decisions at all? I can't choose who I'll marry? Who I'll have sex with? Where I buy my deli meat?" I inquired, becoming enraged.

"Son, you're so silly, who buys deli meat? And you'll marry and have sex with Sora because she'll make you more popular. She's open to sharing her body with her boyfriend, I could arrange a date. You'll make front page headlines as Ninjago's Sweethearts!" My mother exclaimed, beaming with joy.

"MOM! I don't wanna have sex! Would you think underaged intercourse would make me more popular? That could worsen my career! She'll be known as a slut, and I'll be the rapist!" I stated.

"You don't know what's best for you! I only do what can improve your career. Without me-"

"That's the first problem, have you ever thought I never wanted to go into show biz? Have you ever just thought, 'would my son be okay with this?' Like when you divorced dad because he 'ruined your ratings', you're just a social climber without a heart!" I spat into her face.

My mother stated at me in complete and other shock, I never blew up at her like that before.

"Okay, go with that lady. Don't blame me when the angry letters come in. And don't expect me to come to your funeral when you inevitability get killed. Go pack your bags, today you're not my son anymore." My mother said to me with a scary calm voice.

Guess I finally got my way.

(Master Jun's P.O.V.)

I stared sadly at the picture before me. I couldn't believe they got to her before I could.

"Master Jun, another girl just arrived," Mika stated, poking her head into my room.

"Excellent, let's go give her a tour," I replied with a smile, putting away the photograph.

I followed Mika outside into the courtyard where the others were training... or I thought they were.

"So then I won the Ninjago Basketball League trophy." Mack boasted to Shima.

"Do I look like I care?" Shima stated coldly, staring down at her phone.

"Ugh, this is why I don't like flirting with cute nerds," Mack grumbled.

"Hello Shima, I believe your parents told you what happened to your sister?" I inquired.

"Yeah... I don't care though, I never liked her."

"Your sister died and you don't even care? Wow, that's just cold." Ian said.

"She was a hoe, so I don't think she deserves the love she received." Shima spat back at him.

"Anyway, we shall start the tour of the monastery. You'll be sharing a room with the two other girls, Mika, who's here, and Ingrid, who is probably in your room. The girls' room is on the left side of the building, and the boys' is on the right." I began.

The others continued training as I led Shima into the building.

"This is the living room, beside it is the kitchen and the dining room. Down the hall on the left and right are the bathrooms. My room is in the centre if you ever need to talk to me. Outside is the training yard." I continued.

"Okay... I'll be in my room then." Shima said before turning to the left and going down the hall.

"Just remember you have to train tomorrow until you finish the course." I reminded her before entering my room as well.

I locked the door and sat down on my meditation mat.

_(Flashback, no P.O.V.)_

_"Thank you, Jun. I'm glad to have someone like you raising our daughter." Ciara Yin said to me before she died._

_"Goodbye old friend..." Master Jun whispered before exiting the room._

_Master Jun walked down the hall quietly to the baby nursery to check on Keyna Yin, her deceased best friend's only child._

_"Are you Jun Wu?" Someone asked Master Jun, running up to her._

_"Yes, why?"_

_"Your adopted child just went missing. There's a giant hole in the roof!" The person exclaimed._

_Master Jun felt her whole world crumble. She was tasked to raise Keyna, how could she lose a newborn so quickly?_

—

_"A beautiful little girl named Keyna Yin, an elemental master who can change history forever." A man in a dark suit said, placing the newborn in an ivory cradle._

_"Let's kill her then!" A creature stated, retracting his claws._

_"Hey! We can use her. Jun can't defeat or harm her unless she wants the other elemental masters powerless." The man explained._

_"Why don't we kill her then? The other elemental masters would be powerless then!"_

_"Because we can use her against Ninjago. We'll exact revenge on those useless elementals. Then we'll kill her afterwards." The man elaborated further._

_"Should we train her in the dark arts?" The creature inquired._

_"Yes, we'll teach her everything she needs to know to defeat the elementals." The man stated before cackling evilly._

(Back to the present, Keyna's P.O.V.)

I smashed the board quickly with a scissor kick before punching a dummy in the 'weakest' points.

"Nice job Keyna, but I need more conviction." My master told me.

"Yes," I bowed to him before punching and kicking more furiously.

"Why don't you spar with me?" A creature is known to me as Akuma.

"Um... sure," I mumbled, blushing a bit.

I don't know why but I have a crush on a bodiless creature. I guess it started since I was five, which was like ten years ago. Akuma always seemed cool and amazing. However, he'll never love me because I'm a human AND an elemental master.

"Ready you two? Annnnnnd... GO!"

Akuma and I began our sparring match. I could instantly tell from the beginning Akuma wasn't gonna go easy on me.

People say pain goes away quickly, but I'm pretty sure they haven't truly felt pain. Facing Akuma might've been a bad idea. In the end, I was covered in scars and bruises.

"Ugh..." I groaned, lying on the ground in pain.

"You hesitate too much, and your stance is completely off. And you're not even trying to aim for my weak spots! How will you defeat the other elemental masters with moves like that?" Akuma criticized me.

"C'mon, let's practice that warmup one more time, then you can have lunch." My master stated.

I stood up slowly, wincing a bit at the pain, before getting back in my stance.

"This is pitiful to watch," Akuma grumbled before leaving the room.

That made me kinda depressed but I practiced nonetheless. After what felt like hours, I finally got to eat lunch.

"A dill pickle sandwich with artichoke." My master said before throwing me the disgusting sandwich.

I grabbed the sandwich and went into my room. I didn't feel like watching the news with them because I always got uncomfortable when they talk about the dead elementals.

Don't get me wrong, I hate the other elemental masters. They're practically useless if I'm around. Like, who needs an earth master if I could control earth as well?

—

"One day, that's all." My master told me before giving me forty dollars.

Today was the day I could finally go into New Ninjago City. I've visited like once when I was nine but that's all.

"Thank you, master." I bowed before grabbing a hoodie and running outside.

From there I basically ran a hundred kilometres into the city. We lived in the woods far from anything so that's why.

Once in the city, I tried to blend in the best as I can with my abnormally light strawberry blond hair.

"Pizza! Get yer fresh pizza!" A man yelled loudly to attract new customers.

Everyone seemed so busy and comfortable in the city, I almost felt bad for what was happening to their world. Almost.

One group of teens, however, made me rethink this. Their demeanour seemed like they didn't know each other well, but their conversation was very vivid and amusing.

"So your mom wanted you to marry, a girl who was four years younger than you?" A girl asked one of the guys, who seemed awfully familiar.

"OHMYGOD! IT'S CARLOS RAMOS!" Someone yelled loudly in my ears.

Oh, that's who that guy is.

Girls began swarming the movie star, pushing out his friends.

I promptly decided to go to the mall to avoid chaos.

What I gotta say? My master made the mistake of giving me forty bucks.


	3. Training

**(A/N: I'M SO SORRY I HAVEN'T UPDATED! I thought I already published this chapter, but I guess I didn't. Again, apologies for the _very_ long wait. Enjoy!)**

(Mika's P.O.V.)

I was sleeping soundly... until someone smashed a gong.

"AHHH!" I cried, falling off my bunk bed and landing on top of Ingrid, who was directly below me.

"Oww..." she mumbled underneath me.

"You guys are complete clutz," Shima stated before leaving quickly to go to the bathroom.

"I'm sorry," I apologized as I got off of Ingrid.

"That's okay, I'll live..." she whispered.

"Sooooo, Shima's gonna take a while in the bathroom so let's talk. I barely know anything about you, not even your element!" I exclaimed, sitting on her bed as she sat down beside me after getting up.

"Um... I have the element of fire." Ingrid replied.

"Oh, cool. That means we're related!" I gasped in realization.

She gave me a puzzled expression in return. Master Jun probably didn't tell her my element, or the others'.

"I have the element of water. And most of us know that the fire and water masters from a hundred years ago were siblings." I explained.

"You forgot to mention Carlos is related to her because the master of amber married the master of fire as well. Then they had five children who all shared their gifts, also one of them had the power over water and fire, but she died at the age of thirteen after a car accident." Someone elaborated.

_Ian... _I thought with an eye roll.

"Hi, Ian, how's it going?" Ingrid inquired, perking up a bit.

"Good, how's your arm?" He replied.

"Better now, I got used to the pain." She stated with a shrug.

"Well, you guys should get ready for breakfast, I heard Carlos is attempting to cook. However, if he is like any other actor/elemental master, we should order pizza." Ian joked before leaving.

"He's so funny..." Ingrid sighed.

"Do you have a crush on him?" I inquired, nudging her gently.

"WHAT! Um... no?" She said unsurely.

After that, Shima finally finished in the bathroom. Then Ingrid and I rushed in.

—

"Breakfast is served!" Carlos stated, placing a tray full of pancakes in the centre of the table.

"Woah! This looks actually edible!" Ian exclaimed, poking the pancake with his knife.

"You think I can't cook just because I was a movie star?" Carlos inquired, seeming offended.

"Well..." Ian began.

"Can you just shut up so we can eat?" Shima spat at him.

"Fine," Ian grumbled, biting into a piece of the pancake.

It was an awkward silence after that, no one really talked much.

"Well, now that all of you guys have been acquainted, sort of, I want you guys to introduce yourself formally and state your element." Master Jun said after clearing her plate.

There was an awkward silence after that.

"I'll go first," Carlos offered.

"Yes, you go first,"

"Um, I'm Carlos Ramos if you didn't already know. I'm seventeen and I've never lived in one place for more than a month. And I have the elemental power of ember." Carlos introduced quickly.

From there we went around the table. Next was Shima.

"I'm Shima Song, Ninjago's best mathlete and I'm seventeen-years-old. My power is lightning." Shima stated, seeming not to care really.

Afterwards was Ian.

"I'm Ian Flores, sixteen, older sibling, and I love history, especially about the ninjas. I know EVERYTHING about them! I also have the power of the mind." Ian said, seeming pretty jovial and upbeat.

Mack, I think that's his name, was next.

"I'm Mack Arian, best b-ball player in my city. I'm sixteen as well and I have the power of shadow apparently." Mack stated, acting uninterested like Shima.

Zoltar? That's his name, maybe.

"I'm Zoltar, son of the Venomari tribe leader. I'm fourteen and I'm the masssster of earth," Zoltar said.

Ingrid's turn.

"Um... er... I'm Ingrid Lee... I'm um... sixteen... I have the power over uh... fire..." Ingrid whispered anxiously, not making eye contact with anyone.

Guess it's me.

"I'm Mika Takahashi and I'm sixteen-years-old. I have the power of water AND ice." I stated calmly.

"Thank you for introducing yourselves. From now I expect all of you to get along. Not for the sake of the team, but for the sake of Ninjago. Ninjago's fate is in your hands now." Master Jun said.

(Mack's P.O.V.)

Mika seems kinda cute, confident, mature, maybe athletic too. I like that in my women. Let's just see how she fights.

"Let me get you guys in uniform before we run the course." Master Jun said before spinning around to all of us.

After I stopped spinning, I noticed I was wearing a navy ninja yoroi and I had two katanas strapped to my back.

"How'd you do that?" I gasped.

"A ninja always keeps its secret." Master Jun stated with a smirk.

I looked at the other and noticed they all seem pretty well-dressed. Carlos had a dark cyan yoroi with a scythe, Ian had on a grey yoroi with kunais hooked onto the belt, Mika had a lavender yoroi with shurikens, Shima was wearing a red yoroi with nunchucks, Zoltar had an orange yoroi with sais, and lastly, Ingrid had on a maroon yoroi and a kusarigama.

"Now let's begin the first part of your training. Go through this course WITHOUT damaging the dummies with or without your weapons or powers." Master Jun instructed us.

I volunteered first because I don't lose or fail.

Master Jun pressed a button the course appeared from the ground.

The first obstacle I faced was wooden beans swinging at me. I easily dodged them all and somersaulted through a corner.

Next was a dummy, which shouldn't be too hard to defeat. It's not like it could fight back...

—

Well, apparently that dummy wasn't as easy as I thought. It's 'shock-absorbent' as Shima claimed. Ugh... she seems like an uptight prick.

"Okay... Carlos, you're next," Master Jun stated.

Carlos walked towards the course and managed to get past the first obstacle, like me. He even got past the dummy but ran straight into a wooden board, which sprung up from the ground.

It went like that for what felt like hours. Each one of us manages to pass one obstacle but fails at the next. Well, Ingrid didn't get past the first one at all. Shima got to the fourth, which was a rope swing. Zoltar got to the fifth, which was a swimming one. Ian got to the seventh one, which was a rock wall. Lastly, Mika got to the last one but lost her grip on her shurikens and got pinned by them when they were flung back. Overall, most people got past the sixth one, which just shot paintballs at us.

"Well, now I know what all of you have difficulties with, you must redo the course as many times as you need to until you complete it." Master Jun stated.

"WHAT!" We all yelled in shock.

"Don't worry, we can leave when she's gone," I whispered.

"On the contrary, I will sit here and watch you all. Once you complete the course, you can do whatever you want." Master Jun stated, picking up a pot of tea and sitting down.

Ugh... old hag...

We all kept on doing the course, and I'm sure we didn't improve.

"You guys are making the same mistakes over and over again. Carlos keeps on running instead of waiting for the board, Mack keeps on ramming his body into the dummy, Mika keeps on letting go of her shurikens too early, Ian isn't paying attention to the moving rocks, Zoltar doesn't count the number of wires there are in the pool, Ingrid doesn't even try to count the number of rings there are on the wooden beams, and Shima doesn't notice the ropes are covered in goo! You need o work together, I never said you had to complete the course on your own!" Master Jun exclaimed in annoyance.

"But-"

"You need to pay attention to the details. If Ninjago's fate is in your hands, I'll have to warn them of this catastrophe beforehand then." Master Jun grumbled while sipping her tea.

"We should listen to her advice," Mika stated as we all huddled together.

"No, really?" Shima gasped in fake sarcasm.

"At least I noticed the goo," Mika retorted.

"You keep on letting go of your shurikens!" Shima argued.

"Let's stop arguing and focus on working together!" Carlos stated.

"Ugh... fine..." Shima grumbled with an eye roll.

"So let's focus on the first obstacle, Ingrid, you need to 'count the rings' as Master Jun said," Ian suggested.

"I didn't have to do that though..." Zoltar pointed out.

"Maybe she wants us to unlock our powers?" Mika guessed.

"I already unlocked my powersss..." Zoltar hissed.

"Yeah, cool..." I grumbled.

"So Ingrid, you're powers are fire, right?" Ian double-checked.

Ingrid nodded her head sheepishly, seeming uncomfortable. Ugh... probably another horse lover that's like super-shy or something.

"Maybe you're supposed to create a ring of fire to stop it?"

"No, that'll damage the beams, and she said we can't damage anything."

"Oh, maybe Mika and Ingrid use their powers at the same time?"

"Or Carlos could use his power," Ian suggested instead.

"Why?"

"Because Carlos comes into contact with lots of people..."

"And I might've come in contact with the master of wind!" Carlos gasped in realization.

"Bingo,"

"Let's do it," I stated.

Carlos ran up to the wooden beams and surpirsingly shot a gust of wind at the beams.

"Woah!" Carlos exclaimed as we snuck past the beams.

After that, we started tag-teaming to complete the course.

As the sun was about to set, we completed the course.

"Ah, you kids finally learned to work together and Carlos managed to unlock his powers. The rest of your powers will come along shortly, sometimes in the midst of battle. But for now, we shall celebrate your completion of the course by eating pizza!" Master Jun stated with a proud smile.

(Ingrid's P.O.V.)

I looked at the photograph in my lap. It was of my mother and I both she died because of her powers...

_Will I have the same fate? I always had this burning feeling in my heart, like there's a fire. However, my father always found a way for me to hide these emotions through his, sick ways..._

"Ingrid? You want to eat some pizza?" Mika inquired, popping her head into our room and letting some light in from the hallway.

"Um... I'm good..." I stated, shoving the picture into my backpack.

"You sure? I noticed you didn't eat anything at breakfast," Mika pointed-out.

"I'm fine, I already ate," I lied with a fake smile.

Mika didn't seem to believe me but she stopped pestering me and left.

Ah... silence and darkness...

I suddenly had a flashback to last Thursday, or as my dad called it, Titty Thursday...

_(Flashback)_

_"C'mon my little flower, it's time to have some fun!" My dad said from inside our bedroom._

_I felt a shiver go up to my spine as I placed my knife back inside a drawer in the kitchen. _Guess I'll finish cutting myself tomorrow_, I thought with a sigh._

_I slipped off my shirt and bra before hopping onto my bed with my dad, who has a sadistic grin._

_"Time to play!" He yelled before grabbing me._

_(Flashback over)_

—

I was training again with the others, practicing Spinjitzu apparently. Well, it was more like seven teenagers spinning around aimlessly.

"ARGH!" Mack yelled after landing in a painful-looking position on the ground.

"WOOHOO!" Carlos exclaimed as he finally was able to spin.

A dark cyan aura appeared as he spun before disappearing as he stopped.

"Nice job, Carlos," Master Jun congradulated him.

"Ugh... asshole..." Mack grumbled in most likely jealousy.

Well, that makes sense. Carlos unlocked his powers second, and now he can do Spinjitzu. Also, he's a famous movie star that almost every girl is attracted too, like who wouldn't be jealous of all that fame?

However, I'm noticing small signs like sleep deprivation and stress. There are small bags underneath his eyes, indicating he hasn't gotten a proper sleep at all. Also, the fact he always wincing whenever he does something, meaning he's overworked. This is all because of his acting career and his mother, who was voted eight years in a row as a gold digger and overachiever.

This makes me kind of feel bad for him. Actually, lots of people I feel bad for don't even know I exist.

My old algebra teacher is always putting on a smile but I noticed that he has faint scars on his neck and face. He mentioned on multiple occasions he has a 'loving wife', but I'm pretty sure that's a lie. Once his wife came in and started flirting with another teacher when he wasn't looking. I was the only one that noticed because I stayed inside while everyone went outside. The fact his wife would flirt with another man means their marriage isn't going well, and she appears to have long fingernails which would be great for scratching necks and the face. What does that mean? That means his wife abuses and cheats on him on multiple occasion. He once had to call in absent and I saw he had a broken arm and a black eye in the supermarket.

"INGRID!"

I looked up from the ground and saw Master Jun standing in front of me.

"You haven't practiced at all for the last thirty minutes, we need all of you in tip-top shape for battle," Master Jun stated.

I nodded my head before standing up and walking away from the wall. Then I began practicing Spinjitzu and my powers.

"C'mon, I don't like her," I heard someone mumble from not too far away from me.

I glanced behind me and saw Mack and Shima whispering.

"Ugh... she probably thinks she's better than all of us so she doesn't need to practice," Shima whispered to Mack.

Oh... they're talking behind my back... isn't that 'new'.

I have been bullied my whole life for being 'too small' or 'not thicc enough'. I've grown used to the sting of the insults. However, sometimes I forget how much it hurts and I go through a whirlwind of pain all over again. Especially from people that I barely know...

Then something odd happened. As I practiced Spinjitzu, a wall of fire formed around me, like a tornado.

Afterwards, everything went black.

—

Ugh... my head hurts...

I opened my eyes a bit and saw a bright light before closing my eyes once more.

"Is she okay?" I heard someone ask.

I managed to open my eyes again and was not blinded by a bright light. This time I saw Ian, Mika, Zoltar, Carlos, and Master Jun in front of me.

"Ugh... what happened?" I mumbled.

"You fainted while performing Spinjitzu. You somehow managed to perform a tornado of fire as well." Master Jun explained as Carlos helped me into a sitting position.

"Oh..." I sighed.

"But that isn't why you fainted," Mika added on.

Oh no...

"You fainted because it seems like you haven't been eating for the past week according to the doctors at the hospital and Mika. Also, there are several cuts on your arms." Master Jun explained, giving me an odd look.

I looked down at my lap and started to feel really anxious. They all know now... wait, where are Mack and Shima?

"Mack and Shima were sent to do laps," Ian said.

How?

"I unlocked my power as well and found out Shima and Mack were making fun of you," Ian explained.

"Oh... so how many people unlocked their powers?" I inquired.

"Carlos, Zoltar, Ian, you, and I," Mika stated.

"Oh, you unlocked your powers? Congrats," I replied.

"Yep," Mika said with a smile.

Hm... feels like she's hiding something... That smile is hiding something definitely.

"So, how do you feel?" Ian inquired.

"Sore and tired, so nothing new, I guess..." I shrugged.

(Ian's P.O.V.)

So I get Shima's mean and all but, isn't she like super hot? Not to be shallow but, DAMN! The hair, the legs, EVERYTHING!

Oh god, I'm so shallow...

"You guys can have a day off." Master Jun stated as we all ate breakfast.

"For real? YES!" Mack exclaimed in excitement.

"Except for you and Shima. Until you're able to perform Spinjitzu, Airjitzu, or unlock your powers you aren't allowed to have a break." Master Jun added quickly.

"WHAT! That's not fucking fair!" Mack yelled, turning red in anger suddenly.

"It's not our-"

"Also you guys haven't been putting much effort into this unlike the others who are putting in their all," Master Jun said.

Master Jun then pushed them outside and motioned for us to leave.

"Where should we go?" Zoltar inquired after they left.

"Well, I need to change so the paparazzi don't chase us down," Carlos said before walking back towards our room.

After he got changed, we headed outside.

"Do we get cool vehicles like the original ninjas?" I asked the others as we walked down the steps of the monastery.

"Dunno asked Master Jun," Carlos shrugged in reply.

The quickest way to get from the monastery to the city was by teleportation, so hopefully, Carlos knows how to teleport.

—

"Woah! Issss thisss what New Ninjago City lookssss like? It'ssss so crowded!" Zoltar gasped as we walked down the street.

"Yep, it's like this all the time," I stated with a grin.

Mack and I were the only ones who were born in New Ninjago so we know the most about this place. Ingrid, Mika, and Shima also grew up in New Ninjago, but they said they moved here. Carlos hops around from place to place because of his acting, and Zoltar never left Ouroboros.

"I never been to this part of the city," Ingrid said.

Ooh, she's speaking! Improvement! I guess she's starting to warm up to us.

"C'mon, I know a great place to eat lunch here!" I exclaimed with glee as I led the others to the most well-known spot in all of Ninjago.

Chen's Noodle House.

"Wassssn't thisss own by Masssster Chen before being inherited by hisss daughter?" Zoltar inquired while Mika and Carlos motioned for him to stop.

"Yes, his daughter was also the master of ember too! Much like Carlos- uh, I mean Carl!" I stated, realizing I was about to reveal Carlos' identity.

"Anyway, what's good here?" Carlos asked as we got some seats far away from all the mainstream traffic.

"Well, they have, just to name a few, The Best Noodles in Ninjago, Three Ingredient Sizzling Rice, snow pea cuttlefish, Moo Shu Wu Shu, horned wasp eggs, fortune cookies, cake, sushi, egg rolls and fried rice, and puffy potstickers. " I replied, listing every menu item I could remember.

"Maybe we should get one of each then?" Mika suggested as a waiter walked over to our table.

"Hello, welcome to Chen's Noodle House, I'm Tomi and I'll be your waitress for tonight. You can grab anything that fits your liking on the conveyor belt, but if you want a certain drink, just talk to me or any other waiter. Would any of you like a drink to start off?" The waitress, Tomi, questioned us all.

"Water's fine for me," Ingrid shrugged.

"Lemonade," Zoltar replied.

"Tea," I stated.

"Pop," Mika said.

"Um... iced tea?" Carlos stated, seeming pretty unsure.

"Okay, your drinks will be on their way over in a bit. While you wait, start eating some of the food going by. There's a menu right there so you can look for a certain dish." Tomi said before writing down our order and leaving.

"Iced tea?" Mika inquired, turning to Carlos with her eyebrows raised.

"Never had it before, wanted to see what it tasted like." Carlos shrugged in reply.

"Um, excuse me? You never had iced tea? What has your mother been giving you to drink?" I gasped in shock.

"Um... water and 'special medicine' for my throat so I don't get sick," Carlos explained briefly to us.

"Wow, your mother seems... um... great," I said, unsure on what to say.

"Don't worry, I don't like her that much. She always pressures me into doing tons of random junk, like go here and do this, or date her and sleep with this other one. Ugh..." Carlos rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Oh... Sora's your girlfriend's name?" I guessed.

"Ugh... yeah," Carlos nodded before grabbing a plate from the conveyor belt and placing it in the centre of our table.

We started grabbing more plates and eating as the drinks arrived.

"Lemonade, tea, iced tea, water, and pop, call me if you want refills," Tomi said as she handed us our drinks.

Her glazed lingered on Carlos for a second longer than the rest of us before she left to tend to another table.

"Did you see that?" I asked the others.

"See what?" Zoltar inquired.

"Our waitress was staring at Carl, do you think she knows who you are?"

"Nah... unless Mack or Shima got mad and posted something online," Carlos stated in realization.

"It's probably nothing, she probably thought you looked weird with all that makeup," Mika teased him.

"Is it that noticeable?" Carlos gasped, his hand going up to his face.

"She'ssss kidding," Zoltar reassured him.

"Oh, okay," Carlos sighed in relief.

(Zoltar's P.O.V.)

After eating lunch, we paid and left quickly.

"Where are we going next?" Carlos inquired.

"Doesn't mat-" Ian began when we heard shouting.

We all turned around and saw tons of girls running towards us while shrieking Carlos' name repeatedly.

"I LOVE YOU, CARLOS!" One of them screeched.

"Um, I think they did post something," Carlos declared before running ahead of us.

We all ran after him, mainly because we didn't want to get rip to shreds by crazed fans.

"Where are we going exactly?" I asked as we turned onto another street.

That was a bad choice.

On the other street, a mob of fans all stared of at us before running towards us, all eyes on Carlos.

"How'd you live like this?" Mika exclaimed as we crossed the road instead.

"Up ahead! An alley, you can teleport us!" Ian suggested as an alley appeared.

We all ran into the alley, urging Carlos to teleport us before the mob finds us cornered.

"Where?" Carlos asked frantically.

"Anywhere but here!" I shouted.

A second later we were in a hotel, I think. I've seen pictures of them, but never truly been in one.

"Where are we?" Mika inquired as we looked around.

"Oh, shit..." Carlos' eyes widened in realization as he recognized where he led us too.

"I'M _MISS_ RAMOS! NOT MRS. RAMOS!" I heard someone scream before the door to the bedroom burst open.

"Carlos! What in the heavens are you doing here? I thought you said you don't want anything to do with showbiz anymore, and now you bring some commoners in here?" The lady, which is most presumably Carlos' mother, questioned.

"We were trying to get-"

"Have you finally realized that you don't wanna be a samurai anymore?" Miss Ramos asked, her eyes lighting up with joy.

"Um... I'm a ninja and-"

"Good, cause we have thirty more interviews, but you haven't explained why-"

"MOM! I'm trying to say we, my new friends, teleported here because mobs of crazy fans were chasing us down! I don't wanna be an actor anymore, how many times have I told you?" Carlos exclaimed as a strong gust of wind blew through the room.

"Well, who taught you to interrupt people? Do we have to bring you to finishing school again?" Miss Ramos queried in exasperation.

"Um, YOU DID! You always interrupt me!" Carlos stated, the wind becoming stronger.

"Ugh... the maid left the window open... And what's this talk about teleporting? Have you been drinking again?" Miss Ramos inquired as she walked towards the window to close it.

"I have powers, you know this! Why else would Master Jun ask me to join her team? Dad must've-"

"Don't ever mention your father! And you've obviously been drinking or taking drugs again." Miss Ramos stated with the shake of her head.

"I never took drugs! I'm not drunk or high!" Carlos yelled as the rest of us were nearly knocked down by a gust of wind.

"Carlos just calm down..." Mika said, a look of worry crossing her face.

"Where is this draft coming from?" Miss Ramos inquired obliviously.

"FROM YOUR SON!" We all exclaimed.

"Impossible..." Miss Ramos' eyes widened in realization as she finally realized her son has powers.

"My son's a freak, just like his mentally insane father. I should've shipped you off to the same asylum as your father!" Miss Ramos spat before turning on her heels out of the room.

There was an awkward silence after that.

"Um... we should get back now..." I said uncomfortably.

"Yeah..." Carlos said before teleported us back to the monastery.

—

Once back at the monastery, we found Mack and Shima with smug looks on their faces.

"Back so soon?" Mack inquired.

Carlos pushed past both of them and made a beeline towards the front entrance.

"What's up with him? Can't handle the fans?" Mack asked with a chuckled.

"We all hate you by the way," I stated.

"Whatever," Mack rolled his eyes before Master Jun appeared.

"Ah... you're back already, just in time as well. Now that Mack and Shima learned how to do Spinjitzu and control their powers, we can begin sparring." Master Jun elaborated calmly, seeming not to notice the air of hostility.

"Should I get Carlos?" Ian questioned.

"No... let him be..." Master Jun replied, looking back at the monastery.

"Wait... so we're gonna fight each other? Didn't you say you want us to work together?" Ian inquired.

"Yes, but what's the likelihood you're all gonna be by each other's side twenty-four-seven?" Master Jun replied.

"I guess..."

"Anyway, I'll partner you off: Ian, go with Mack, Mika with Zoltar, and Ingrid with Shima," Master Jun stated.

We all stood about a metre apart from our opponent, roughly a metre away from each other side to side.

"Annnnnd, begin," Master Jun yelled.

Mika shot a blast of ice at me, which I easily dodged before punching the ground, causing an earthquake only in her direction. She counters by shooting ice underneath me, causing me to slip.

Ugh... this is gonna be a challenge...

(Shima's P.O.V.)

I wonder what happened with Carlos. He came back with the others after I posted something about him being in town.

Anyway, I just defeated Ingrid, who seemed to be too shy and timid to do anything. Ha, lucky me then.

"Shima, you're making dinner," Master Jun ordered.

"What? Why?"

"Because it's your turn to cook. The kitchen's full, so have fun," Master Jun advised before pushing me into the kitchen.

I looked around the kitchen in disgust. _Ugh... I hate cooking..._ I groaned internally as I washed my hands.

_What should I cook anyway? _I opened the fridge and found it stocked full of meat, fruit, vegetables, and all sorts of condiments. I then checked the pantry, which was full of seasoning, dry baking ingredients, pasta, rice, oils, and tons of junk food.

_Ugh... did Master Jun literally buy all of this for us? Where does she get the money anyway? It's not like they give out winning lottery tickets for old hags..._

Eventually, I decided to make spaghetti, mainly because we had lots of noodles and tomatoes.

To be truthful, I've never learned to cook. I always had servants at my beck and call, so I'm not used to doing things on my own. I blame my dumbass sister.

Yeah, she was murdered or whatever, but I still don't like her. You want to know why? She's the reason I was forced into math competitions. I might be an award-winning mathlete, but I hate math so much!

I was a normal kid leaving in Ignacia until I started doing math. Soon my teachers realized I had a gift, so they gave me harder questions, which were still too easy for me. Ugh... then my sister got a 'bright' idea. She said I should apply for the top schools in New Ninjago City, which I didn't want to do. Then she started to 'persuade' me into doing it. I eventually gave up resisting her bullying tactics and applied, instantly getting accepted.

From there I became 'too mature for my age', as my parents say. Fuck them. They wanted me to join the schools, I did. Were they happy? No, they kept on pressuring me until I was an adult in a teenager's body... I hate them all. I hate my family so much!

"Dinner's done!" I yelled out of the door as I prepared each plate.

Do you know what I will rather be doing than being a famous mathlete? Travelling Ninjago. I want to see the Frozen Wastelands, the Anacondrai Tomb, and the Dark Island.

"Ooh! Spaghetti!" Zoltar exclaimed as I placed the dishes on the dining table.

"Yeah, whatever," I sat down in a seat before digging in.

Everyone else was talking as I quietly ate my meal.

However, I noticed Carlos and Ingrid didn't even utter a word. Well, Ingrid is always depressed so yeah, but why Carlos?

After dinner, the others decided to have a video game match, the winner gets to have the cookies in the pantry. I decided to opt-out so I could check on Carlos, in a not creepy way.

I found Carlos sitting in his room on his phone. I gently knocked on the wall to get his attention.

"You good?" I inquired.

"Um... yeah... why?"

"Well, you've been pretty quiet all day, well, since I posted that thing about you being in New Ninjago City."

"Wait... you posted that?" Carlos gasped.

"Yeah... so?"

"Do you even know what happened?" Carlos questioned, seeming to become angry.

"I just thought it was unfair that you guys got to go to New Ninjago City just cause you unlocked your powers first." I retorted fiercely.

"Oh really? Did you know I met my mother there too? She hates me now that she knows I have powers! She called me 'a freak like my father'! Do you know how much that hurts? Getting called a freak by your own family?" Carlos exclaimed as a strong gust blew through the room.

"Oh, and you think my life's easy in comparison?"

"Yeah, you just answer some dumb math questions and get called a genius while I get called a man-whore!"

I heard lighting strike something outside as we continued to argue. Ugh... why does he have to be so hot- er... I mean stubborn?

I don't find him, the brown and red-haired, tall, blue-eyed actor attractive... nope, not at all... heh.

"So what? I was bullied by my family to become a mathlete while you were born into your role!"

"Really? That's how you think it works in showbiz? My mother abandoned my father the moment, 'his ratings dropped'. Then I was forced to go to Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts! Do you think I wanted this life at all?" Carlos asked me as I was nearly knocked over by a gust of wind.

"Do you think I want my OWN life? I would rather be anyway but here. All my parents care about is my sister, who was the so-called 'perfect angel' of the family! The only thing they noticed about me was the fact I was too mature to play dolls and that I can do the Pythagorean Theory in my head!" I spat, lighting setting something on fire outside the window.

The door behind me burst open and Master Jun appeared with a stern expression on her face.

"Do you know how much damage you guys caused? Look outside the window!" Master Jun yelled at us both.

Carlos and I gasped in shock after we gazed out of the window. Apparently, our powers destroyed three trees and blew up several boulders.

"Let's not forgot the fact Mika had to put out a fire both of you guys caused in your argument."

"How'd you know we were arguing?"

"You guys were so loud I couldn't hear the others playing their video games. Also, no way you guys can cause that much damage unless you're really hyped up." Master Jun explained, "Now, go outside and clean your mess up!" She yelled, pointing towards the exit.

_Ugh... old hag..._

(Carlos' P.O.V.)

Is it weird I find Shima yelling at me hot? It is? Okay... guess I'm weird.

I wonder where Shima would rather want to be than here? At her home? Nah, she said she hates her family.

Where would I go if I weren't a ninja and an actor? Well, I have always wanted to try new food cuisines. Maybe I'll do some more mapping or reading on Ninjago's history? I'm actually kind of jealous of Ian because he knows so much.

Anyway, after we cleaned up the rocks and burned trees, we all headed to bed.

The next day, Ingrid made us breakfast, which was just plain old scrambled eggs with bacon. Afterwards, Master Jun ordered us to meet in the courtyard.

"Wonder what she wants us to do today," Ian said as we entered the courtyard.

"Good morning everyone, today we finally have a mission. It's pretty simple, you just need to save the Floating Ruins from some pirates," Master Jun explained.

"Um... we can barely work together, who says we can save a city?"

In the past hundred years, people have started to create a city in the Floating Ruins. It's actually pretty cool, my mother made me do a movie there once cause it was 'trending'.

I was there for thirty minutes with Sora when she started to complain about the food and the atmosphere was horrible. Of course the atmosphere is bad, we're floating! I thought the food was good, but she said it seemed so rude of me to lie. Um, I'm speaking the truth! Also, it's more rude to be straight up insulting the cuisine!

Thank god I broke up with her the moment I moved here to the monastery. Here I can make new friends and actually grow into a person I want to be rather than what my mother wants.

"It's just an easy mission. After you get rid of the pirates, you need to look for a man named Wen Yu who will give you a bag. Once obtaining the bag, you must return immediately to the monastery," Master Jun ordered.

Then... we were off.

If you're wondering how we got to the Floating Ruins, I did not teleport us there. Teleporting six people including yourself is much harder than teleporting yourself and three others for some shitty reason.

Anyway, Master Jun gave us vehicles to drive, sans me of course. Ingrid was given a motorcycle, Zoltar got a helicopter, Shima got this high-tech racing car, Mika had a snowmobile, Mack received a fighter jet, and Ian surprisingly got a scooter.

—

"Why did I get the lamest ride?" Ian complained through our headset as I waited in the Floating Ruins in my dark yoroi.

Hopefully, no one finds out I'm Carlos Ramos, the famous movie star in all of Ninjago.

"Oh... you're here," there was only one person who I didn't like on my team, Mack.

"Well, I don't like you either," I replied, my voice devoid of all emotion.

It's easy for me to hide my emotions since I'm a movie star. A great actor always has more than two 'masks' on, meaning that we always have something hidden under our happy facade.

I pretended to be happy that Sora remained 'faithful' towards me after the 'minor scandal' as my mother dubs it. However, I know she wasn't faithful whatsoever. She will sleep with anyone with at least a six-inch dick.

"You may be famous, but you're not a perfect saint like the reporters claim, it's easy to tell. You're just another sleaze bag who wants to use their fame to get into girls' panties." Mack spat, crossing his arms defiantly.

How am I not surprised he would act this way? He's either jealous or just doesn't like me at all. Ha, my life is far from perfect. My mother is a golddigger, the same goes for Sora who just wants a sugar daddy, and I have no fucking clue who my father is at all.

Mack's probably just a hotheaded jock who has a dad that coaches him and a mother who fusses over how his hair looks. I want those kinds of parents, not my shitty, estrangled, practically non-existed family.

I guess Shima has it bad too, she did say she was forced into becoming a mathlete, but there must be some reason she actually agreed to do the math. Maybe she liked it for fun, but her parents were too pushy and she ended up in these competitions. I understand the feeling of being pressured into something you don't want to do at a young age.

"C'mon, let's deal with those pirates," Mika said, jumping off her snowmobile as the others arrived with her.

"What's the plan?" Ian asked as he adjusted his hood.

"Hold up, who died and made you our leader?" Shima inquired, crossing her arms curtly.

"Well, since you're a blabbermouth, I think _I'll_ be a better leader than you," Mika replied calmly.

"Well, I got-"

"How about we save the people from the pirates first?" Ian suggested civilly.

"Yeah, good idea," I agreed uncomfortably before we ran towards the pirate ship.

I guess it was kinda stupid to stand there like idiots but, eh, too late now. People gave us odd looks but they didn't care once we started saving them from the pirates.

The pirates, who were the stereotypical pirates even though it's 3015, were surprisingly well trained and fought incredibly well. I think they even had vengestone swords or something.

"So yer the new ninja, eh?" One pirate asked me as I fought him.

"Really? What makes you think that?" I heard Shima replied sarcastically.

"I don't like ye tongue, girly," my pirate spat.

I turned around and saw a pirate grab Shima around the neck and started choking her.

"SHIMA!" I yelled, running towards her.

I shot lightning at the pirate, dogging a dagger thrown at my head. I kicked the pirate's leg out from under him, causing him to lose his grip on Shima. Shima did a spinning back kick to the pirate's head before falling.

"Hey, you okay?" I inquired in worry.

"Ye-yeah, just a l-little out of breath." She replied, taking a couple of deep breaths before standing up and picking up her nunchucks she dropped previously.

"You-"

"I'm fine, let's just find Wen Yu," Shima stated rudely before walking off.

I looked around and realized the others were handcuffing the remaining pirates as the police arrived.

I readjusted my mask before following her.

(Keyna's P.O.V.)

I smashed the pitcher against the ground after seeing the news. My master ordered these pirates to attack the Floating Ruins, and guess what? NINJAS SHOWED UP! Elemental ones to be correct! _I_ was supposed to go and 'fight' the pirates to trick the public into trusting me! Next, we kidnap the rest of the elementals, then BOOM! We eliminated all the fucking elementals and I become the last one! Ugh, those pirates are IMBECILES!

"Are you mad?" Akuma asked with a smirk as he watched me rage.

I blushed before replying, "O-of course! Those pirates didn't put up a good enough fight!"

"Or we underestimated Master Jun and her abilities." My master said sternly, "We must figure out the identities of these new elementals and find their weaknesses."

"From what I gathered, one of them has power over lightning, meaning either they're the lightning master or the master of amber. But if they're the master of amber, there must be a lightning master out there we can kill." Akuma suggested calmly.

"Wait, do you mean we're gonna k-kill these ninjas?" I asked, my voice shaking out of fear.

Defeating the elementals is one thing, killing them is something else. I just wanted to drain their powers with a reconstructed Staff of Elements my master wields.

"You said you hate the ninjas, killing them would make you happy, correct?" Akuma inquired with his eyebrows raised.

"W-well, I guess, but I thought we're just gonna drain their powers..."

"Yes, but if they pose a threat to us, we have to eliminate them. It's obvious, you should know this. The last wielder of the staff let the masters live and that destroyed him." My master stated as if it wasn't clear.

"Uh... do you want me to do recon on them? The ninjas I mean?" I questioned, wanting to change the subject.

"No, Akuma can sneak into their monastery and spy on them, maybe even cause some discord to destroy their bond." He said offhandedly but picking something up.

"I'll head over immediately," Akuma said before disappearing in a gust of smoke.

"What would you like me to do, master?" I asked, bowing at him.

"Hmm... proceed with your training," my master said before sitting on his throne and observing me as I sparred with a practice dummy.

—

I collapse to the ground, completely out of breath because of my rigorous training.

"Pathetic, utterly useless, you call that a hook kick? I called that a hickey kick, kicking your opponent would only lead them to get a little bruise on their neck." My master spat at me angrily, "Get back on your feet!"

I pushed myself into a standing position before bringing my guard up and fighting an illusion. Akuma recently came back from spying, discovering what powers the ninjas had, and created multiple illusions for me to fight.

"Fire, amber, lightning, earth, shadow, mind, and a person with water _and_ ice powers, pretty decent setup but I saw them arguing so there was enough discord already," Akuma informed our master as they watched me fight.

Unfortunately, I was too busy paying attention to what Akuma said I didn't notice the illusion punching me in the gut before flipping me over.

"AGH!" I cried out as my body slammed against the concrete floor.

My head hit the ground as well, causing my vision to blur in and out of focus. _Ugh... hate concussions..._

"GET THE FUCK BACK UP!" My master yelled, grabbing me by the collar of my shirt and yanking me into a standing position.

"YOU THINK THIS IS ALL FUN AND GAMES, HUH? WELL, YOU BETTER GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER OR I'LL PERSONALLY KILL YOU AND LET YOUR POWERS DIE OUT! YOU FUCKING HEAR ME?" My master shrieked into my ears as I winced in fear.

The last time he was this angry was when Master Jun, the leader of the ninja team, got away with the documents saying who were the remaining elementals. That time, every little slip up got him screaming. That's why I always try to stay on his good side because I NEVER wanted to get punished like that _again._

"I'm s-sor-"

"I DON'T CARE WHAT YOUR EXCUSE IS! YOU'RE A USELESS PILE OF SHIT! YOU'RE LUCKY I DON'T KILL YOU RIGHT FUCKING NOW!" My master roared, throwing me onto the ground again.

"Shall we teach her lesson?" Akuma asked with a sadistic grin.

How did I ever like him...

"Yes, we should," my master said while taking deep and scary breaths.

"Finally, something fun," Akuma said before a knife appeared in his hands.

I tried running away then, but I felt something holding me down. I even tried my powers, but whatever held me down was immune to my powers, probably vengestone.

"Please, I promise I-"

"Promises are for the weak, and we don't care about weak-minded elemental masters." Akuma hissed, twirling the blade in his hand.

I felt something block my mouth as I screamed. The pain was unbearable and consistent. I wanted to pass out but for some shitty reason, I couldn't. I had to ride through the pain sadly.

—

I woke up to the feeling of pain. In my semiconscious, I felt like I was being stabbed in a million places. When I woke fully, I realized I was surrounded in my own pool of blood.

I managed to crawl to my room and get some bandages on before collapsing into the comfort of my own bed.

It was nice resting in my bed. _It's the only way I could escape the pain, _I thought as I took out some painkillers.

My master and Akuma don't know about my secret drug stash, and I'm thankful for that. I don't want them to know I have a way of escaping from the world of pain they give me.

You're probably wondering why I don't run away and stuff, that's because my master and Akuma aren't always this cruel. They're only like this when something goes against their plan, which is pretty rare. Usually, they're more reserved and they judge me mentally not verbally.

I'm fine, this is just like a storm and I have to just wait it out with painkillers. Don't worry, I'm not addicted or anything, I just use it when I need it. Basically whenever my master is in a bad mood.

Do I ever wish or dream that I'm not hurting elemental masters? Actually, no, quite hypocritical because I am one but still. They aren't worthy of their powers, they don't know how to use it to its full extent, that's what Akuma taught me. Fortunately, Akuma can teach me to use my powers properly and for the greater good.

Elemental masters have proven to misuse their powers and be destructive, but with proper guidance, like from Akuma, they can use their powers for good. Much like me, I'm using powers to liberate those who can't control themselves.


	4. Strife and Amity

** (A/N: Hi! Sorry for the long wait... I was busy with my other more popular stories. SUPER SORRY! Anyway, with the long wait, I had time to plan. Warning for any unethical junk in this chapter, the only thing I know about trials is from 'Legally Blonde'. Enjoy this new chapter, ignore the BS title and the bad geography (I can't find a proper map of Ninjago that has the monastery on it)! Also, remember to wash your hands and stay safe!)**

(Mika's P.O.V.)

After we received the package from Wen Yu, we returned to the monastery. However, the whole time I had a bad feeling about the pirates attacking the Floating Ruins. If felt like we were being _watched _the whole time.

"Chill, Mika, you're probably overreacting," Ian reassured me when I voiced my concerns at dinner.

"This is why I should be the leader," I heard Shima grumbled.

"You're too pessimistic and critical,"

"Whatever," she stated with an eye roll.

Not long after, we broke into _another _argument. Honestly, we couldn't last two minutes without screaming our heads off at each other.

"IT'S YOUR GODDAMN FAULT!" Mack screamed.

This time, I had no clue what they were arguing about. My main concern was our powers getting involved.

"OH! IT'S _MY_ FAULT? THAT'S RICH COMING FROM YOU!" Shima exclaimed with mock laughter.

"Okay, let's settle this outside. You and me, duel,"

"HEY!" Master Jun yelled, silencing them. "If you must duel each other, would you mind being quick about it? Next time you argue, do that instead of ruining our dinner."

This silenced them, causing the rest of us to pick at our food awkwardly before Shima and Mack stood up to go outside.

All of us resumed eating, ignoring the yelling and thunder coming from outside until we finished our meals.

"You kids may go outside and deal with their fight. Make sure to clean up your mess," Master Jun said before walking off into her room.

We decided to take her advice and went outside, having to dodge a bolt of lightning that flew above us.

"Stay still!" Shima shrieked at Mack before doing Spinjitzu and knocking him to the ground.

"Bitch," he muttered before disappearing into the shadows and reappearing behind her, punching her in the shoulder.

She stumbled forward, turning around and glaring daggers at him.

Her forehead was drenched in sweat as she glared him down, her clothes having been changed into her red yoroi were also soaked in sweat as well. She looked a bit dishevelled and almost deranged if you didn't know the context of the story.

She lunged forward, setting sparks of electricity off her fingers and towards his surprised figure. He got a minor shock from the looks of it but retaliated by doing a roll and punching her.

Honestly, this was more entertaining to watch than the video game tournament we had a couple of days ago.

* * *

Several days later, we had to do more training and sparing. However, this time without powers and purely on skills alone.

"Arms higher, try swinging your legs more as well." Master Jun advised me as I squared off against Zoltar.

I followed her suggestion and managed to floor the snake boy easily.

"Thanks," I said to Master Jun before helping my opponent up.

"You're really good," he complimented me, brushing off some of the dust on himself.

I blushed, "You aren't that bad yourself. You've probably been training a lot longer than me though..."

Zoltar was one of the sane people on our team. Ian and Ingrid weren't that bad, but Ian talked a bit too much and Ingrid was... a bit too depressed for me. I have nothing against her, she just could be a bit of a Debby Downer when I'm trying to stay optimistic for the team. Carlos was okay too, but he got into the same amount of arguments as Shima and Mack, so he isn't that level-headed.

"Hey, keep your head out of Cloud Nine, Mika."

I turned and saw Mack give me a smirk before punching Carlos in the head, causing the other's head to snap back.

"Try not to concuss your partner!" I spat at him before continuing to spar with Zoltar.

We continued sparring with one another until Master Jun called a break, giving us all this gross tea before making us practice Spinjitzu again.

I don't dislike Spinjitzu, but training continuously gets a tad tiring after a while, if I'm being honest. Doing the same moves, over, and over is tiresome and repetitive. I rather fight an actual criminal than stage cooped up in our dojo days on end practicing. I know training's important and all, but doing it nonstop sucks.

"Keep your elbows up, knees tucked in!" Master Jun walked back and forth, inspecting our form and correcting us. "And, spin!"

We all spun at once, struggling to not crash into each other, resulting in the majority of us crashing into everything else.

"If this is Ninjago's best defence, we're better off without you guys destroying everything in your lousy attempts."

"Thank you, Master Jun, for that very uplifting comment," Ian replied sarcastically, pulling himself out of a pile of broken dummy parts.

"I don't need your sass, Flores," Master Jun said, sweeping her cane under Ian.

Mack snickered at this before he was pushed over by Master Jun too, causing the rest of us to snap back into line.

(Mack's P.O.V.)

After practicing, we were sent to our respected rooms for a break. Unfortunately, I shared mine with Ian, Zoltar, and Carlos, otherwise known as Mr. Famous, Silent Snake, and ChatterBox.

God, Ian's so annoying.

This morning, he was ranting on and on about the past ninjas and their great accomplishments, like how the previous master of lightning was famous for his mechanical skills and how the earth master went to the same school Carlos did. Jesus, who the fuck knows this much nonsense crap? Who the fuck wants to know all the shitty stuff past ninjas did? Ninjas haven't existed for like a millennium or something.

"Hey, Mack,"

I looked up from my phone and saw Carlos donning a blue baseball cap.

"What?"

"Master Jun is letting us all have a day off. You wanna hang out with us?" he inquired.

I raised my eyebrows, surprised at his offer. I ruined their hangout last time, why the hell do they want me with them this time? Is this just a pity act? I know famous people loved doing charity events and shit, feed the poor and swimming with orphans. I hate pity.

"If you don't wanna, it's fine. We'll be waiting in the courtyard for five minutes," he said before pushing open the door and walking out with Ian and Zoltar.

I sat there, contemplating going or not.

"By the way," he stuck his head back inside. "Mika will be coming if that makes you any more interested." With that, he disappeared back outside.

_Fuck it_, I thought, grabbing my letterman jacket from the hook above my bed and walking out while slipping my shoes on.

I cast one look around my shared room again, seeing two bunk beds across from each other with our stuff on our respected beds.

Mine had my basketball shoved underneath the bottom bunk and a picture of me winning championships thumbtacked to the wall. Then there was my phone charger hanging off the side of my bed, making it look a bit messy because of my unmade bed.

Carlos was the top of mine, having a wider space on the walls to hang a map of Ninjago and some travel pamphlets. He also seemed to have shoved a couple of books in the corner of his beds because we hadn't added anything to the rest of our room yet. It looked somewhat clean and pristine, fitting for an actor you would say.

Then there was Zoltar's bottom one, which had a couple of books shoved in a milk crate underneath it but otherwise bare. There was also a long stick or something sticking out the bottom of his bed, which I thought was his weapon but he has sais, so I don't have a clue what it is.

Lastly was Ian, the complete and other obsessive of the room. Much like the rest of my roommates, he liked reading for some reason. He had like this two-foot pile of books balancing precariously on his bed. Most of them seemed to be boring history books, like 'History of the Elementals' or 'Guide to be the Next Lloyd Garmadon'.

After checking our closet, which held our weapons and the rest of our clothes, I headed out to the courtyard and just barely caught the others before they left.

"You came?" Ian seemed shocked that I decided to show up.

What surprised me more was Shima being here as well. She stood with her arms crossed as Ian finished vividly telling her about something.

"Yeah, seems like I saved Shima from your convo too," I smirked before walking up to their little huddle.

Mika rolled her eyes at my comment before turning and talking to Zoltar.

"Be back before ten, I expect all of you to be in tip-top shape for more training tomorrow!" Master Jun yelled at us. "Contact me if needed! And try to be mindful about your powers, not everyone is accepting as you think."

We murmured agreements before walking outside.

"To be honest, I don't think I can transport seven people," Carlos stated, looking at us all.

"We have vehicles for a reason," I stated.

"Yeah, which were all over the news described as the _ninjas'_ rides, not a bunch of teens." Shima pointed out to me.

"I dunno then, just walk?" I suggested sarcastically.

"God, you may be right," Shima grumbled before the rest of us followed her down the steps.

* * *

After walking down the mountain which did not have an impossible height, we arrived near a small rural town a mile from the mountain. No one in the town questioned how we got there, or the fact we had a Serpentine with us. They easily led us to a bus stop, and from there we arrived in the city Stiix, which was built atop of the Endless Sea.

"Did you know the ninjas completely levelled this city when they fought the Preeminent? The whole city became a salvage yard up to two hundred years ago." Ian was going off on another lecture when we finally arrived in the city.

We all slipped off the bus, and honestly, I was amazed by the city. If you thought New Ninjago City was a high-tech metropolis, then Stiix would be straight out of a sci-fi novel about an alien city.

"Damn," was all that came out of my mouth as all of us stared at the city in wonder.

The skyscrapers towered over the water, but it seemed to sparkle in the sunlight as the lights refracted through the windows. I've seen old photos of how musty and foggy it was, but now the place practically glittered in the sunlight. The whole city was shining but it didn't overshine, it was just right. The lighting was spectacular and it was impossible to describe.

"S-so what should we do?" Mika inquired, interrupting our staring.

"Have any of you guys been here before?" I asked them as we began walking away from the bus stop so we don't create a blockage.

They all shook their heads except for Carlos.

"I've been here once for a horror movie shoot. This place is mostly known for its history with ghosts so it makes a profit from ghost sightings and junk." Carlos elaborated, pulling down his cap further to obstruct his face.

"Fun fact-" Ian began.

"Fun fact: no one cares," I retorted.

"Hey, you don't always have to be rude to me. Honestly, I think you're jealous of my intelligence." Ian stated with his arms crossed.

"Oh, I'm jealous, please," I stated with an eye roll

"Guys, how about we just get lunch or something? Maybe somewhere, I don't know, more recluse?" Mika suggested, getting in between Ian and I.

"Yessss, I agree," Zoltar stated before motioning to Carlos to lead.

Turns out, Carlos had no clue where he was going so we had to use the GPS on one of our phones, which resulted in us getting weird looks from some locals.

(Ingrid P.O.V.)

We ended up finding a place to eat quite easily. It was called Ronin's Emporium of Devilish Eats, which made Ian go off on a tangent about a crook named Ronin who assisted the ninjas on numerous occasions.

The life of a crook... wouldn't it be nice to not have any responsibility like that? As a ninja, the fate of Ninjago rest on your shoulders, one false move and you destroy a city, like Stiix. Maybe it was a mistake joining, but I don't want to disappoint Master Jun even though my team probably hates me.

Mika, Zoltar, Carlos, and Ian seem nice, but they're likely pretending, Carlos is a renowned actor for a reason. No one wants to be friends with me anyway, they've always bullied and ignored me.

"What do you want, Ingrid?" Ian asked me, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"Um..." I glanced at the menu before realizing I wasn't that hungry.

I haven't been hungry for years, now that I think about it. _When was the last time I ate something because I wanted too? _I asked myself mentally.

"I'm not that hungry," I whispered, keeping my head down.

The others glanced at each other, Shima going next and placing her order.

Mika nudged me, giving me a look of concern. "You have to eat something."

"I'm fine," I lied with a weak smile.

"Try thinking more positively, please?" Ian whispered across the table from me. "I don't want to go back into your head and tell you in there."

Oh... he doesn't like being in my head. Of course, why would he? It's not like I'm any special. All the paintings I make are literal horse shit, I have no friends, and I can barely create a single flame with my powers.

"Um... I'll try,"

"You_ will_," he corrected me.

Mika cast me one more look before ordering a small salad for me instead, which made me a bit happy. At least she acted like she cared a bit.

The rest of the lunch went by without me talking again, mainly flowing on the others trying to get along and get to know each other slightly better without screaming their faces off. I found it interesting to spectate.

"Wait, so none of you guys were born in New Ninjago City except for Mack and I?" Ian said skeptically.

"Yeah," Mika looked around at the rest of us, "basically."

"But all of you guys moved there, except for Zoltar?" Mack inquired.

"Well, I technically never moved there, I was just there for a promotional thing," Carlos said offhandedly, glancing around before sipping his virgin piña colada.

He was still antsy about the last time, I'm sure. He was caught out here in public and made the tabloids for 'ditching' his career and future for some weird theories. Some journalists say he wanted to become a street performer, others say he was punished by his mother for getting his girlfriend pregnant, the list goes on and gets more bizarre. Funny thing is, someone theorized he became an elemental master, but that was the only story rebuffed.

"What's it like outside of Ouroboros anyway? I heard there are mainly only snakes that live there." Mika seemed curious about him, leaning towards him on her right while I sat on her left.

"It'sss nice and more open outsssssside," Zoltar answered.

If you ask me, he seemed almost as shy as me. He was quiet and recluse unlike the rest of our team, and seemed more conservative of his actions.

"You're the son of the leader? Does that mean you'll inherit the tribe or is that not how it works?" Mack questioned, leaning back and throwing a fry in his mouth. "And Ian, I don't wanna hear your boring history lesson, 'kay?"

Ian, who sat up straighter at the prospect of explaining the Serpentine, slouched back in his seat, glaring at Mack from beside him.

"Um... technically, yessss," Zoltar responded rather uncomfortably.

"Why were you wondering about where we live?" Shima inquired, pushing around her plate of salad.

"Well, if we all lived in New Ninjago, how come we've never come across each other? I lived there my whole life and never came across you guys at all." Ian admitted, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"It's a big city with lots of people," Shima stated with a shrug.

"Which district do you guys live in then?" Ian questioned.

Due to the fact New Ninjago City was ginormous, every area was divided into a district like Sapporo or Banchi. Then there were neighbourhoods within them, like regular cities. Each district varied wealth, but some were better off than others because of their location. However, most districts were equal status, not including the exception of Alferdy and Wangfujing. The neighbourhoods were where the struggle really was.

"Alferdy," Shima said, her voice portraying how it was an upper-class district.

"Damn!" Mack's eyes widened, "How rich are you?"

"I'm well off," she stated nonchalantly.

"I live in Sapporo," I answered quietly, keeping my eyes down.

"Ooh? Really? I live in there too!" Ian exclaimed, "That makes sense why Master Jun picked you up after me."

I nodded, offering a weak smile in reply.

"Well, I'm from Yabaolu," Mika stated calmly.

"Hey, I'm in the next district over when I'm on promotions. Higashi," Carlos added.

"Sentosa," Mack said last, seeming bored of the conversation already.

"Wait, which school did you go to? If we lived in the same district, we might've gone to the same school!" Ian asked me energetically.

"Um..." I struggled to remember the name of my high school. I haven't gone there for a while because I got sick and I was avoiding going back to the bullying. "McClaren?"

Ian's eyes widened, his jaw literally dropping. "I actually go there!"

"Scratch that, it isn't that big of a city," Shima grumbled with her arms crossed.

"I just had a basketball game against McClaren, won, of course," Mack boasted with a grin.

"I'm not really into sports," Ian stated.

"Yeah," Mack looked Ian up and down, "I could tell."

(Ian's P.O.V.)

Mack is such an asshole, Jesus. He's always ripping on someone, and he seemed so shallow and fucking arrogant! Doesn't he even listen to me!

I swallowed my bubbling anger and replied with, "I rather not start _another_ argument." I chose to take the high road, and maybe, just maybe, he got that through his dense skull.

He gave me a condescending look before saying, "Fine with me," through clenched teeth.

"So," Mika began, trying to divert from the uncomfortable topic we slipped into, "all of you guys are in high school?"

_Thanks_, I said to her mentally.

She smiled in reply, looking rather uncomfortable now that I entered her head.

"Well, I just started," Zoltar answered her.

I recalled vaguely that we told each other our ages, all ranging from fourteen to seventeen, I believe. I think it was on our first morning together, but I could be wrong. That _was_ a while ago.

"Freshie?" Mack raised his eyebrow when asking.

"Well, if you count my school as a high school. It's a school for high ranking Serpentinessss, and my father is a General. It'sss more like a private school," Zoltar elaborated.

"Oh, cool," Mika commented.

"I go to Smithsonian Academy," Shima said afterwards.

That's when all of our jaws dropped.

Smithsonian Academy was the most elite school in all of Ninjago. It was the hardest to get in, the hardest to pass, and had the harshest teachers. Some kids get admitted in, but they never stay long enough for people to remember them. I heard rumours there were only eight kids in their graduating class last year!

"How the bloody hell did you get in there?" I gasped.

"It's the hardest school in all of Ninjago, you need at least a 9.0 GPA to even do the admission exams!" Mack exclaimed.

"I'm a fucking genius, remember?" Shima raised her eyebrows at us.

"I didn't think you were actually Ninjago's best mathlete!" Mika replied.

"Look it up," Shima suggested with a shrug.

I brought out my phone, typing up her name. A second later, millions of links showed up talking about her skills and fame. She was on multiple talk shows, numerous newspapers, and had hundreds of competition playbacks.

Damn, and I was wondering how she could get any hotter.

"Holy shit, you're practically as famous as me!" Carlos stated, lowering his voice when he said himself.

"How come we've never heard of you before?" Zoltar inquired.

"Well, I'm a math genius, and most people care about Ninjago's idols and fashion vloggers binge-eating ramen," Shima pointed out.

"Eh, you ain't wrong." I shrugged in agreement.

After that, we paid for our lunch and headed out for some sightseeing.

"What about, the Airjitzu Temple? Says it's haunted," I waved the pamphlet in my hand around with a grin.

We stopped by a tour shop, grabbing a handful of brochures before heading off to a park bench and discussing where we should go to first.

"Um, isn't it floating?" Carlos questioned, flipping through a magazine.

Okay, don't hate me because I'm saying this but, I really hate Carlos for some reason. Well, he's famous, and probably pretty arrogant like Mack as well. He's an actor though, he was born to fool people with his 'charismatic' personality. Ugh... I hate him.

"Yeah, they use a blimp to get up." I pointed to the giant blimp on the header of the pamphlet.

"I kinda don't wanna turn into a ghost," Zoltar said uneasily.

"Pfft," Mack kicked his feet up, "You believe that mumbo-jumbo about turning into a ghost at sunset? Why the hell would they have tours that late anyway?"

"Well, for starters, the temple's not cursed anymore do to the rift being open and amends being made with the previous master. Secondly, you don't believe in ghosts, but you perfectly understand the fact we're elemental masters? Like the earth ninja was a freaking ghost at one point!" I exclaimed, not believing anyone could possibly be this dense.

"Hey, no fucking normal person knows any of that history shit, only you, nerd." Mack stood up, squaring up with my slightly smaller height.

"Guys, chill, we're supposed to be on a break, remember?" Mika pushed us away from each other. "Try not to start a fight in public, unless someone's life's in danger."

"You're life's gonna be endanger once I through with you," Mack spat at me.

"Shut the fuck up, dipshit!" I retorted.

"Hey, listen to Mika, will ya?" Carlos stood up from his seat, getting between us as well.

I heard Mack grumble something that would've made me punch him if it weren't for the fact I respected Mika too much and we were in public.

"How about we go to another town or city? Y'know, a change of scenery would be nice," Zoltar suggested quietly.

"Yeah, let's switch cities," I agreed before picking up a map we dropped and examining it.

"Nearest town is... Jamanikai," Shima stated, looking over my shoulder and making me jump.

Then we were off again.

The bus ride to Jamanikai was about the same as the one to Stiix from the monstery. Jamanikai is extremely close to the monastery. I wonder why we didn't go there first...

"Haven't been here in a while,"

I turned to Mika who whispered that quietly, looking around with a hard to read expression.

"You've been here before?" I asked her as the others started walking ahead of us.

"Y-yeah, I use to live here until my dad got a job and moved us to New Ninjago," she replied before running to catch up with the others.

(Zoltar's P.O.V.)

I have never been outside of Ouroboros until the day Master Jun took me to the monstery, so I was obviously the worst person to ask for guidance as we wandered the streets of Jamanikai village, or well, city.

From my history and geography lessons, Ninajgo had changed a lot since the Time of the Ninjas, which was the name of the period when the ninjas protected against the forces of darkness. Apparently, up until then, New Ninjago City was the only technologically advanced place on the whole island! After a century or something, Julian Enterprises created its business after the fall of Borg Industries, which was the company that handled all the electronic junk in New Ninjago. Then Julian Enterprises opened up tons of businesses around Ninjago and made tons of small villages into flourishing metropolises.

"There's the movie theatre," Mack suggested as we passed the said theatre.

"What shows are on?"

We all stopped in front of a giant sign that displayed all the newest movies.

"Well, crap," Carlos said before turning away from the board, his cheeks flushing bright red.

Mack started laughing after reading the heading.

On the board in big, bold letters, were 'FEATURING ALL CARLOS RAMOS MOVIES FOR A WHOLE MONTH'. Honestly, that made almost all of us start laughing.

"Let's get a ticket and see he's jackass film," Mack suggested with a snort.

"No," Carlos moaned, "those were the crappiest ones I made!" He added, hiding his face in his hands as the rest of us hollered.

"C'mon, it can't be that bad," Mika reassured him, calming down first.

* * *

She was wrong, very wrong. The movie was _really_ bad. I'm usually not that harsh, but it seriously was one of the worst films I have ever seen.

For starters, it was called, 'True Loves Fateful Kiss' and was about a boy learning to love again after a breakup with his girlfriend. To sum up, they were dating for three years. Reason for the breakup? She cheated on him with his best friend. Then, he meets a 'rebel' girl who doesn't want anything to do with love. Guess what happens next. They fall in love. Blah, blah, blah, his ex asks for forgiveness and kisses him, the new girl sees it and thinks he's a cheater and they breakup. Plot twist: they get back together in the end after a 'big', cheesy, romantic gesture.

Most cliché movie plot in the universe. Worst part? There were standing ovations at the end of the film. In the theatre.

"How did you get roped into that cheesy love tale?" Shima inquired as we exited the theatre.

"I dunno, my mother made me. Before that, she said it would be great for my ratings if I dated my co-star, Sora." While Carlos elaborated, he seemed annoyed by the whole thing.

"Well, she's not that half bad if you think about it," Mack speculated.

His comment resulted in Mika and Shima to slap him across the face.

"Hey!"

"Stop being so shallow, Jesus," Shima spat.

"But did you see her? Blue eyes, long legs-"

"Do you even know how old she was in that film?" Mika exclaimed.

"I dunno, fifteen, sixteen," Mack guessed with a shrug.

"She was twelve,"

We all turned to Carlos when he said this.

"What?" Mack's eyes widened, "No way could she have been twelve. Like, her character was sixteen for fuck's sake!"

"She was always talented in getting what she wanted, and she wanted to be the female lead," Carlos stated in response.

"Wait, when did you guysss start even dating?" I inquired quietly, trying to keep my voice down just in case any people passing by overheard us.

"She was ten, I was twelve," Carlos said, seeming ashamed of himself.

"Damn!" Mack stated, "How the fuck did she do that?"

"Ugh... don't remind me of her..." Carlos grumbled as we walked towards the park.

Once in the park, I saw a magazine sitting on a park bench with Carlos' picture on the cover with a picture of his ex beside him. I walked up and picked it up, my eyes widening once I read the caption underneath it.

"What is it?" Mika came up to me and read the magazine, a look of equal shock and horror appeared on her face.

"C-Carlosss, I-I think you need to see this," I stuttered, turning around.

"What?"

I handed him the magazine.

At first, he looked confused. Then, his confusion turned to horror and rage. "What the bloody hell is this!"

"Chill, Mr. Famous, don't get your insured eyebrows wrinkled," Mack joked before grabbing the magazine himself.

I tried to understand what happened and what lead to this magazine being published. I prayed it was just false news, and it probably was, but this would pose a problem for any future missions if the public finds out who Carlos is.

"'Carlos Ramos accused by ex-girlfriend, Sora Yang, of raping her and sexually assaulting her in a recent tearful interview. Reporters are now trying to uncover what happened to the fame star before his sudden disappearance and breakup. Some fans speculate this is another publicity stunt on Sora's part, but others think it's a coverup story for what happened to the 'Aloe Vera Games' star'," Ian read off the cover of the tabloid.

"Oh shit, that's bad," Mika commented.

"Bad? It's fucking horrifying! The worse part is that people believe her bullshit and are spinning crap stories about her ideas! I don't care it's gonna ruin my goddamn status, I'm just pissed she pulled this shit!" Carlos exclaimed, ripping the magazine out of Mack's hands and ripping it in half. He then turned and stormed off.

"Carl!" Mika yelled after him, using his alias once more.

"Dude! Let's just head back to the monastery!" Ian called out to him.

Carlos stopped, his shoulders slumping as we caught up to him.

"How about blowing off some steam by training?" I suggested as I stood beside him.

"Yeah... whatever," Carlos grumbled.

(Shima's P.O.V.)

After we arrived back at the monastery, something shocked me. Mack was _helping_ Carlos.

Zoltar suggested Carlos blow off some steam after his dumbass ex said shit about him, and Mack is sparring with him.

No weapons. No powers. Just fist-to-fist fighting.

Do I understand what made Mack gain some form of compassion and do this? No, I actually fucking don't. Maybe he isn't that hot-headed as he appears.

"Ready?" Mack asked Carlos.

"Almost, let me change," was his reply.

Carlos walked into the monastery and emerged several minutes later in a tank top and shorts. Believe me, when I say this, he was hot. Ingrid may be the fire master, but damn, that boy was smoking.

Ugh, I'm so shallow sometimes. I need to reel all these emotions in and hide it all like I'm used to. The more pain you show, the more pain people can inflict on you.

"You wanna change?"

"Got it," Mack replied before slipping off his hoodie and revealing a tank top as well underneath. "Let's go,"

It was interesting to watch them fight hand to hand, way better than with powers. Less backlash towards the audience as well.

"Popcorn?"

I turned, seeing Ian offering me a bucket filled to the brim with popcorn. I accepted, mildly puzzled by its randomness.

"I made it," Zoltar stated, eyes still glued to the match.

I shrugged, putting one in my mouth before focussing on the fight.

A little while later, Master Jun came outside and watched the fight from beside us.

"Is this the result of a disagreement, or are they doing this of their own free will?" she inquired, accepting popcorn offered to her by Mika.

"Carlos is mad and wanted to blow off some steam," Ian elaborated.

"I wouldn't recommend this form of distraction, but it seems to be working so I'll leave it be." Master Jun ate a bit of popcorn herself.

As the fight continued, a thought occurred to me. "How did you know we were elemental masters?"

"Hmm?" Master Jun turned to me.

"How did you manage to track us down? Like, if how did you know where we were junk?" I inquired.

"Well, you must have heard the news about the wind master dying?"

I nodded my head, unsure where this was going.

"Well, I knew some elemental masters myself, like I told you guys previously. As well, I um... _recovered_ some documents saying who were some of the remaining elementals that were confirmed. From there, I informed the police of my search and found you seven. Originally, we were supposed to have more, but some kids were either too young, while others were far too old. I informed them of their heritage for their protection, and the police swore to protect the majority of them." Master Jun elaborated quickly.

"Woah, that's awesome! Who are the rest of the masters?" Ian jumped into the conversation eagerly.

"Well, for safety reasons, I can't give you that information," Master Jun replied.

"Have they all reached their true potential?" Ian questioned.

True what?

"Some, but most of them haven't, much like you guys."

"Wait, what's that?" I was confused. I haven't that term used before.

"It is best if I tell everyone at once." Master Jun stood up, ordering the boys to stop fighting and gather around.

The boys stopped, both looking exhausted and drenched in sweat. They obeyed her command and joined us sitting in front of the main building.

"True potential is when an elemental master overcomes a huge emotional obstacle in their life. A good example would be the earth ninja gaining support and strength from his father finally accepting him." Master Jun explained to us.

"So, why is this important?" Mack inquired, panting slightly.

"Well, once you unlock your true potential, you will gain new abilities and fully master your powers, like right now, Ian can only read minds, correct?" Master Jun turned to the brunette.

"Um, yeah," he replied.

"Well, with his potential unlocked, he can control minds and such. He can _fully_ unlock any abilities within his realm of control." Master Jun revealed to us calmly.

"Woah! I can do that?" Ian jumped up, bouncing up and down practically.

"Stop getting excited, psycho," Mack commented.

"Anyway," Master Jun began, most likely in an attempt to sway us away from another argument, "let's head inside so Zoltar can make the dinner."

We all stood up, some of us grabbing the remains of our popcorn, then headed inside. Once inside, Zoltar headed into the kitchen while the rest of us headed into the dining room.

"So, none of us have fully mastered our powers?" Mika questioned as we sat down.

"Yes, all you're doing is the full extent of your powers currently," Master Jun responded.

"Really? All I can do is just teleport then?" Mack exclaimed, seeming outraged by this revelation.

"Well, until you unlock your true potential, there isn't much else you could do unless you channel your powers through your weapons," Master Jun answered.

"Well, that sucks," Ian commented, slumping in his seat.

"Hey, could be worse," Mika pointed out.

"How?"

"You could be um... dead?" Mika stated with a shrug.

"I rather be..." I heard Ingrid mumble.

"Um, okay then." Zoltar came into the room, balancing plates of food in his arms. He carefully placed all of the food onto the table before sitting down between Mika and Mack.

"Let's just eat," Carlos suggested before we all dug in.

(Carlos' P.O.V.)

Several days after discovering what Sora posted, I received an email requesting my presence at a goddamn courthouse.

"What should I do?" I asked the others after I told them about the email.

"Well, just go, it's better than avoiding it and making yourself seem more guilty," Mika said, cutting into her pancake.

"Yeah, but it's a crack case. There's no evidence and crap," Mack pointed out, "she has nothing to hold you against."

"I say you should go, just get over it. It's a proper closure between you two," Master Jun stated, sipping some tea.

I slumped in my seat, pushing the bits of pancake around on my plate. "Fine, I'll go."

* * *

"Do you, Carlos Ramos, plead innocent to all these charges of sexual assault against you?" The judge asked me, looking annoyed and tired.

Once I exited a car I rented, I was bombarded by the press asking for exclusive interviews and crap. I, of course, ignored them all and continued walking forward with my old bodyguard Mikel, who agreed to come with me to my mock trial.

The lawyers and the judge came up to me at the beginning, which is completely unethical, and told me Sora had no solid evidence against me whatsoever so I wouldn't get actually tried. Apparently, she threw a tantrum when they disapproved of her case and whined to her father about it. Overall, this trial is fake beyond compare. The whole point of its existence is to please my brat of an ex.

I feel bad for everyone that was roped into this when they had better things to do.

"Yes, I do, Your Honour," I replied from my seat.

"I object!" Sora yelled, jumping up from her seat in rage.

To be honest, she looked the part of a trauma victim. Her hair was messed up, her makeup was smudged, and her clothes were dishevelled. She must've paid a fortune to look that messy.

"Honey, just let-" began Mrs. Yang.

"No, I'm not gonna let my crackpot lawyer talk. I played a lawyer before, I know what to do." Sora stated before walking up to the judge with puppy-dog eyes. "Y-you're-"

"Get back to your seat! This is a trial!" the judge bellowed, causing my ex to shrink back and collapse dramatically in her seat.

"Mr. Ramos, plead your case."

"I didn't assault her in any way. She has no evidence whatso-"

"You attacked me on the night I broke up with you!" Sora shrieked, sobbing afterwards.

"You broke up with me? NO! I did, I chose to break up with you after I chose to quit showbiz!" I exclaimed, jumping up from my seat.

"Lies!" Sora sobbed, blowing her nose on her expensive designer tissue.

Yes, that's a thing.

"Order in the court!" The judge slammed their gavel against the bench loudly as chatter rose in the air.

"Mr. Ramos, where were you on the night of the alleged breakup and assault?"

"I was with Sora. Before that, I was packing up my stuff from my temporary penthouse. I went to talk to her face-to-face about our breakup. Afterwards, I left," I elaborated.

Master Jun warned me about talking about me becoming a ninja. She would rather keep our identities a secret from the public as long as possible for our protection and our family.

"Where did you go afterwards?"

"Onboard a plane to my new residence."

"Why did you choose to quit acting in the pinnacle of your career?"

"Life as an actor is too filled with drama, much like this. I rather live a quiet life and travel Ninjago. Sora didn't agree with the terms of the breakup and chose to take this path of accusations towards me." I responded calmly.

"Miss Yang, how do you plead your case? What is your evidence towards Mr. Ramos assault?" They turned towards my ex, whose sobs stopped.

"H-h-he attacked me!" Sora yelled.

"Yes, but where's your evidence?"

"AREN'T I ENOUGH EVIDENCE? I'M THE VICTIM! I'M THE ONE WHO SUFFERED!"

"Yes, or so you claimed. You have no evidence of these accusations towards Mr. Ramos. You claim you, yourself, are the evidence. However, when asked to be examined by medical examiners-"

"She's suffering Post-Traumatic Stress!" her lawyer argued, standing up.

"I understand if she-"

"I am!"

"Well, if you want your story to be plausible, you need to provide clear, ethical data.

"On the night of the alleged attack, witnesses spotted you leaving, unharmed and perfectly fine. We also obtained photographic proof of you appearing unharmed after your breakup with Mr. Ramos. However, he seemed to receive a slap to the face," the judge revealed, much to the surprise of everyone in the court.

"T-those are lies!"

"This trial is over." The judge slammed the gavel, "Mr. Ramos is proven innocent by default and lack of proof. You are free to go, Mr. Ramos."

After that, I managed to evade the press and return to the temple for some anger releasing sparring.

* * *

I dodged the swing to my head before feinting a punch to Mack's face, which he didn't anticipate and was sent off-balanced before I knocked his legs from under him.

While panting I said, "Good match," before helping Mack to his feet.

"Lucky try," he grumbled.

I rolled my eyes before patting him on the back.

"You guys done already?"

I turned and saw Mika standing at the steps of the building with her arms crossed.

"Why? Were you hoping for us to fight longer?" Mack inquired.

"Nah, just wondering when you're gonna hit the showers. You guys _reek_," she said before turning around and walking indoors.

"Oh, really?" Mack and I exchanged smirks before chasing after her, swinging our sweaty clothes after her.

"Get away from me!" she shrieked before dashing into the girls' room.

Mack and I stood outside, laughing. Damn, I haven't laughed like that in a long time. Too long if you ask me.

"Boys, what mischief are you up to now?" Master Jun questioned, appearing behind a door.

"Just chasing Mika," I responded.

She looked us up and down. "Wash yourselves before continuing."

(Keyna's P.O.V.)

It was, once again, one of my rare days off. On this day, however, I chose to get more pain meds since I messed up again in training. Master got _extremely_ violent recently due to the fact his plan failed due to the incompetence of some civilians.

Akuma was ordered to trick one of the ninja's ex into believing the ninja raped them. Then there was a whole trial and everything, but we underestimated the idiocy of the ex. For starters, we didn't think she was that stupid to not at least act like she was assaulted after the ordeal. She only played the part during the trial! Secondly, she didn't seem to provide any conclusive evidence for the case besides the fact she was the proof, declining any further examinations though.

Honestly, teenagers these days are idiots. Well, I may be sixteen myself but still.

"Do you have a prescription?" the pharmacist asked when I came up to tell him about my need for the opioids.

"Um... I lost my doctor's note but it's j-just a simple refill," I explained nervously.

The pharmacist narrowed her eyes at me, her glasses perched precariously on the edge of her nose. "Sorry, but we can't prescribe you any pain medication unless you have a note. This is a highly potent drug so we need official approval before administering it to anyone, especially a minor like yourself."

"But-"

"Next!" She shooed me away before welcoming the next customer.

I silently cursed her before walking away, pulling up my green hood as I did so to hide my off-coloured hair.

Being strawberry-blond was rare in Ninjago, especially when you're eyes are as green as mine. Honestly, people remember you rather too well with my looks.

I walked down the streets of the Higashi district, looking around for the ridge where my backup dealer was. He always changes locations to avoid the feds but was always near the water for an easy escape.

"Linkin," I whispered the code word to the person in the black outfit on the ridge.

"Nice to see you again, Keyna," they replied, glancing at me through their black shades.

"Do you have it or what?"

"I do, and this is the high-grade stuff so I'm asking for eight hundred."

"What? How the hell am I supposed to get that type of money?" I exclaimed in shock when I heard the price.

Usually, Mx. Dealer here offers me the drugs for fifty, maybe a hundred at the most. Never have they asked for more than that.

"This is the high-grade stuff," they repeated, "straight from the goddamn factory. No cross-contaminations, perfectly clean. You're my first buyer. It doesn't get better from here. If you go to any other ones, they'll have diluted ones probably laced with other drugs that you don't wanna use. This is clean, yer see." He held out the box, which was sealed with the official stamp of Julian Enterprises.

Julian Enterprises controlled all the technology and medical facilities in Ninjago. They're in charge of distributing and maintaining the well-being of civilization here. Well, it's all due to the fact the 'leaders' are the memory cores of Zane and PIXAL Julian, two famed scientists. One of them was even the past ice master!

"How did you get it then?" I questioned, my voice laced with suspicion.

"I know an inside guy who I could hook up with the money I split from this."

"Is this all you have?" Now, my interest was peaked.

One time when I got drugs, it was fifty percent diluted with some random shit. I ended up puking in my room for a day. Fortunately, Akuma and Master thought I got the stomach flu from something.

"Baby, you know I always have more. This is just the sampler, same as what's in my bag. I have two dozen crates back at the warehouse, I could hook you up with all of that for only- let's say, about $460,800."

"WHAT THE ACTUAL-"

"Keep your voice down!" They exclaimed, shushing me before looking around.

"I don't have that kind of money."

"It's eight hundred for two cases. There are twenty-four cases in a crate, and there are twenty-four crates."

"Okay, how about you put them on hold for me?" I suggested instead, knowing there was no one I could get that much without Akuma or Master knowing.

"Elaborate,"

"I buy two cases, then I'll come back in a month for the rest. I'll come out every month for two of them."

"Hmm... something this valuable will run out quick, maybe I'll be able to save you one case by next month," they replied.

"Okay, how much do I need to increase the load? How 'bout I buy three cases, and come back every week?" I suggested as an alternative.

Master usually only lets me out once a month, but with the ninjas out, I can possibly persuade him otherwise. Akuma claims they get out a lot, so maybe I can convince Master to let me out so I can do recon on them. I could befriend them and trick them!

"Now you're talking business."

From there, he gave me three cases before talking about arrangments and payments. At the current moment, I had no money on hand. However, I offered to pay the twenty-four hundred next week when I come in from the next load.

"Nice doing business," they said before offering me their hand.

I shook it before adjusting my backpack and leaving.

After that, I slipped onto a train heading back north, which was where our hideout was. Once the train stopped, I sneaked off it and ran to the secret entrance to our base.

"Your late," Akuma observed from his spot upon the rafters.

"I thought of a plan," I replied.

"Oh, really?" He jumped down from his perch and landed in front of me, smirking.

Okay, I know I said I don't like him anymore, but doing that is so hot. I also know he doesn't have a body, but he can shift form if that wasn't clear.

"The ninjas go out a lot, right?"

"Yeah, I see them out all the time."

"I was wondering if _I_ could do some recon on them. Y'know, befriend them and trick them, normal friendship junk."

"Hmm... I could do that just as easily."

"So, they tell you their secrets?"

"I can see their secrets."

"Do they trust you wholeheartedly and will follow you?" I raised my eyebrow.

"Hm, you might be onto something, Yin."

Yin, that was my last name and current nickname, according to Akuma. He just loves mocking me with my last name.

"So, you're gonna propose it to Master?"

"Oh, no, it's your idea."

I took a gulp, "O-okay,"

I walked towards my room first, shoving my bag in the closet before looking for Master.


	5. Mission

** (A/N: Hey guys, hoped you enjoyed last week's update. Here's a new one that might be late bc I have poor time management skills. Also, I've decided that I'll attach an aesthetic for a character in the chapter after they unlock their true potential. If you're unable to see the image (or on ), I'll provide a link to my Instagram that might work. Enjoy!)**

(Mika's P.O.V.)

After the whole ordeal with Carlos and his slightly psychotic ex, we had a new mission. A factory that produces painkillers was recently raided by drug dealers. Roughly two dozen crates were stolen, maybe more or maybe less.

"So what do you want us to do?" Shima asked Master Jun, filing her nails.

"We're getting assistance from the police for this mission. I want ALL of you to be on your best behaviour and be _extremely_ cautious, I cannot stress this enough. We're going to one of Julian Enterprises' factories in the Frozen Wastelands, so they'll be lethal and dangerous chemicals in the vicinity." Master Jun seemed slightly frazzled as she told us this, appearing almost sidetracked.

"Are _you_ okay, master?" I inquired, deciding to speak up about her appearance.

"Y-yes..." she said, "I just want all of you to keep your identities a secret on this mission and cooperate with the authorities. Without them, hundreds of elementals could be dead if it weren't for their protection program."

"Um, quick question."

We all turned to Ian, who had a confused expression.

"Is it even _safe_ for the police to keep all this information? Like what if the people trying to kill us infiltrated the headquarters and hacked the system?"

"Ian does have a good point, how can it be secure? Nothing online stays private forever, eventually, they'll get hacked and all of those people are exposed. Why don't you relocate them here?" Carlos questioned, joining in on this new discussion.

"Well, it'll be pretty suspicious if hundreds of people just quit their everyday lives and moved into this small monstery," Shima pointed out.

"Still, it would be better to relocate the higher risk elementals, like people who haven't developed their powers."

"Actually," Master Jun began, causing us all to look at her, "a lot of them don't even _know_ they're elementals. Only a select few I know are aware of their powers. The likelihood of them discovering their powers is slim though because you must be _trying_ to unlock them, that's why you guys took so long to activate yours."

How many elementals are there, then? I could've met them all but never realized it, to be honest. Imagine that, you live your whole life without realizing you have this amazing power within you.

"Wait, what happens to that power then after they die? If they aren't aware of having it, how will they pass it on?" Ian asked.

"Isn't it genetic?" Mack inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, partly. You could be related to an elemental master, but they must _pass_ the power onto you. You just don't, get it. They must willingly pass it onto you, unless you forcefully take it with special material, like the Time Blades or the Staff of Elements. A good example of it not being genetic is Zane Julian, he was a nindroid. It can't possibly be DNA related for him, but, according to historian and his memory core, the previous ice master took an interest in him and gifted him the powers." Ian finished the explanation with a look of pride at his vast knowledge.

Then I heard a snoring sound. I turned and saw Mack pretending to snore.

"Mack!" Master Jun smacked him upside the head with a pair of chopsticks.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?" he exclaimed, rubbing his forehead.

"For being rude!" she scolded, "Anyway, you must head to New Ninjago City as soon as possible."

With that, we all got changed before heading underground to the garage where all our vehicles were located.

The garage was built into the old dragon stables because there weren't any dragons left in Ninjago since the Dragon Wars.

The Dragon Wars was one of the biggest conflicts in history, coming in second to the Serpentine Wars. Apparently, citizens accused dragons of destroying cities by scorching or freezing them over. However, in reality, it was just a bunch of sky pirates trying to wreak havoc. Unfortunately, that wasn't discovered until years later after many dragons were massacred. The only people on the dragons' side were the elementals, which lead them to go into hiding after. When all of them went into hiding, that caused a drastic decrease in elemental powers in society until they practically became a myth.

Okay, I know it's weird I know all of this, but I had to learn this from my parents after... nevermind, it's not important the reason. You just need to know that I learned this for a valuable reason.

"Race ya there?" Mack challenged us.

"Carlos would win, he can teleport," I pointed out.

"So can I," he replied.

"Okay, then race each other. First one to get to the police station by teleporting wins," I suggested instead as I slipped my hood on.

"I'm fine with that," Carlos stated.

"You're on."

"Ready, set, go!"

In a flash, they were both gone.

"Ugh... testosterone," Shima grumbled before she took off as well.

Soon, the rest of us took off as well.

Once at the police station, I saw Mack and Carlos arguing in the front, probably over who got their first.

"I got here first, fair and square," Mack stated.

"Sure, whatever, I don't wanna argue about this."

Okay, seems like a short argument.

(Mack's P.O.V.)

After that argument with Carlos, I'm all riled up. I'm not sure if that'll be helpful or not, considering we're not fighting anybody. I hope we fight someone, or else I'll need to blow off some more steam with Carlos.

Once we all arrived, the police commissioner invited us inside his office, introducing himself and debriefing us on the mission.

"I'm Commissioner Alvaro, I've been serving our beautiful nation for forty-five years," he stated.

Oh god... he's gonna be a prick, I bet fifty bucks. Just, look at him in his ironed suit with his perfectly trimmed mustache! I don't see how people can make a living looking like that.

"Jun said you weren't allowed to disclose your names or identities due to the 'Elemental Act', which is a special document dedicated to protecting elementals. Therefore, my workers and I will identify you by the colour of your uniforms.

"Anyway, three days ago, while doing inventory, one of the nindroids noticed they were missing two dozen crates of morphine, alongside twelve dozen vials of chemicals to reproduce it. So, the nindroid reported it to the higher-ups and they rewound the security footage, but it was wiped clean.

"We want you guys to go in there and see if you pick anything up that we didn't. Also, we want some of you to interview some human workers and inspect several nindroids just in case we had an inside man." The commissioner finished explaining to us.

Silence followed as we all soaked up all the details and jobs.

"So, who do you want doing what?" Ian asked after the long pause.

"Jun," he began.

Saying our master's name like that made me oddly uncomfortable. I only knew her for a short time, but calling her just by her first name seemed like degrading her somehow. I don't like her that much, and when she hits me it gets annoying, but it still felt wrong.

"She told us that you had a master of mind? And a master of amber? I think those would be the most useful in the interrogations. And if any of you are tech-savvy, you can help inspect the nindroids or the security footage, but I doubt you'll find anything. The rest of you could go around in protective suits," suggested Commissioner Alvaro.

We all looked at each other, somehow all mentally agreeing on what jobs we wanted to do while I remained somewhat clueless.

I'm not a computer-junkie, so no way am I touching those creepy-ass nindroids. I've seen them before in horror movies and when I went on a field trip to the Frozen Wasteland, they were hella freaky. One just followed me around!

From there, we all went outside with the commissioner before heading off to the Frozen Wasteland.

Once there, we all split up into three groups: one for inspections, one for interrogations, and then one for just scoping out the place. I got placed in the last group because I was too 'short-tempered' for interrogations. What the hell is that supposed to mean?

The people in my group were Ingrid and Mika, which I saw as an absolute win for me. Well, Ingrid's so quiet she'll probably just stand around doing nothing like a priss. However, I can flirt with Mika, so that's good.

"You kids need to wear these protective suits before going in. Also, I need to know your powers just in case they might have a chemical reaction with the materials in here." A doctor was wearing a hazmat suit, reading something on a clipboard before giving us condescending looks.

"Um, I have ice and water powers," Mika stated.

"Hm... you're clear, go ahead into that decontamination room and change." The doctor waved her through, checking something off the clipboard.

"Shadow powers," I answered, crossing my arms.

"Yep, go ahead. Oh, I forgot to mention leave your weapons in the lockers in there too. They have keys in them, just pop your stuff in there and lock it up," the doctor added.

I nodded, going through to the decontamination room.

It kinda looked like a glass shower with tons of clear piping surrounding it. Two doors, one in that locked the moment I got in, and one to get out, which had a giant red 'X' on it currently. Then the room scanned me before spraying me with some weird chemicals. After that, the door opened to the locker room, where I saw Mika slipping on her hazmat suit over her yoroi.

"Wanna share a locker?" I inquired, leaning my shoulder against the locker.

"Sure, let's just wait for Ingrid too."

I rolled my eyes, removing my katanas and placing them on the bench before putting on the hazmat suit, slightly annoyed.

A minute later, someone else came through the decontamination room, but it wasn't Ingrid. Instead, it was Zoltar, which confused us.

"Where's Ingrid?" Mika inquired, her forehead creasing in likely worry.

"Well, once the doctor found out she had fire powers, she was switched with me. Apparently, you need more people scoping the place than checking the droids." He shrugged in response, grabbing a suit for himself.

Once we all suited up and put away our weapons, we headed into the factory, another police officer meeting us out there.

"All the workers have been moved into interrogations so the whole place should be empty. I'll lead you guys to the area where the crates were missing," the officer said.

The officer led us down a short hallway, passing by numerous doors with tons of locks and warnings on them.

"What's in there?" I asked, gesturing towards the most elaborately locked door.

"It's confidential, only select people know what's inside there," the officer stated before turning to the last door and unlocking it.

"I bet the Julian's are in there," I whispered to Mika.

"No way would they keep their memory cores in some low-level place like this. Even if they did, they would've moved it the moment the heist started. Do you know how valuable their cores are? You could cripple the whole nation with their data," Mika replied quietly.

"How do you know this?" I didn't peg her to be a computer geek.

"Um... history classes were quite informative," she replied, looking down.

I felt like she was hiding something, but I continued. If she doesn't wanna talk about it, that's fine with me.

"Don't break anything, and don't bother stealing anything either. The cameras may not be working, but we're doing x-ray scans for your whole lot after you leave," said the officer.

At that moment, I realized something about the officer and some of the workers I saw as we walked in. They all seemed mildly disgusted by us in general, as if being ninjas and having powers was some sort of _disease_ instead of a gift.

Maybe Master Jun was right, maybe not everyone will like us, but I'm sure as hell don't care.

(Ingrid's P.O.V.)

I could tell a lot of people here hated us. The reason? It could've been because we had powers or the fact we had a Serpentine with us. It could be we're ninjas, maybe even because we're just a bunch of teens. Honestly, I'm so used to people hating me I've learned to grow used to the spite that's get thrown at me.

"Do you know _anything_ about coding?" Shima exclaimed in exasperation as we opened up a nindroid.

"N-no..." I looked down, embarrassed at not being good for anything.

I was supposed to go with Mika and Mack, but because of my powers, it would be better suited if I did interrogations or inspection. I chose inspections because it'll be less talking even though I preferred Carlos and Ian's company over Shima's.

"Ugh... it's fine, just open up the droids and I'll inspect them. And god, be careful? These cost more than your power bills," she grumbled as I clumsily pried open the back of a nindroid.

"S-sorry..."

"Whatever, just pass me that _blue_ electrical cord, 'kay?"

I nodded, standing up and moving over to grab the cord for her. I handed it back to her before sitting beside her, uncomfortable.

A long silence passed as she plugged in the nindroid to a laptop the officers gave us. The only source of noise was her fingers tapping the keys on the board.

"Huh?" She raised her eyebrows in confusion, glancing at the droid before looking at me. "Which one is this?"

"Um... I think 4B8?" I guessed, picking up its backplate with the name on it.

"Well, I'm not sure how the police didn't find this, but it seemed like the nindroid was hacked or something. The memory drives showed it was missing a chunk from the night of the robbery."

The police officer who gave us the laptop told us to inform them of anything between 7:30-11:45 pm. Between those times, someone broke in and stole all the stuff. Also, the surveillance was tampered between those two times.

"B-but isn't that kinda obvious? Wouldn't the offi-"

"That's what I don't get. Whoever checked them before us, or uses the droids, tampered with the memory."

"Can you retrieve it?"

She looked around on the screen, typing something in. "No... someone downloaded the footage from the looks of it."

"S-should we-"

"Hm... maybe the others, like Ian and Carlos. Something tells me the police aren't as clean as they seem."

I grew unsettled at that moment. If the police force has corruption inside, who's really on the side of good? How can we trust any of them?

"O-okay... you want me-"

"No, Master Jun gave us those wristwatches, remember? We can communicate with those." At that moment, she rolled up her sleeve and pressed something on her watch.

A moment later, the light flashed and a hologram of a frazzled Carlos appeared, mask gone and only leaving his sweaty appearance.

"Where's your mask?" Shima inquired.

"In the washroom, what do you want?" he replied, rubbing his neck.

"Don't tell the police, but I think someone hacked the droids."

"Yeah, no duh, but why can't we tell them?"

"We think someone might've done this from the inside. Weren't they checked before? Someone must've noticed at least, right?" I elaborated quietly, popping my head in on the side.

"I thought you were on scoping?"

"She was switched because she's a fire hazard."

As expected, those words stung. I was a hazard and clumsy, how am I supposed to handle this power? I'm just some worthless-

"Sorry, but can you please think more positively?" Carlos questioned, interrupting my inner self-depreciation.

"Um... okay..."

"Anyway, just subtly question who checked the droids first. Then maybe one of you guys can read their mind and see who did it if they lie," Shima suggested.

"Um, sure, I guess, any specifics?"

"Put you're acting skills to the test," she responded before ending the call.

From then on, we continued prying open more nindroids and inspecting their memory cores. I actually got to help plug them in after the first couple of tries.

* * *

"Okay, guess we're done then." Shima stood up, stretching before unplugging the last droid and turning off the computer.

"How many did we find with wiped cores?" I inquired.

"Ten, at least, we need to figure out where they were all located before we continue further." She wrote something down on her notepad, which I saw her do numerous times as we checked nindroid after nindroid.

"Um... is this room- um, I mean, does this room have surveillance? Wouldn't they know we're withholding information?" I twisted one of the straps on my yoroi, nervous.

"There shouldn't be, all the workers are gone anyway, so who would know?"

"What if-"

"Stop being so pessimistic. C'mon, let's go see the schedules for these guys." She motioned me to follow her, which I did.

(Ian's P.O.V.)

When Carlos comes back from the washroom, he talked to me in my head.

_Shima and Ingrid think the police might be in on this too_.

_What? How can you be sure?_ I responded, thinking it as unlikely.

_Someone tampered with the robots, no way the police didn't notice before._

I raised my eyebrow at him before turning back to our next person. There was a time for theories, but right now we needed to get in the officers' good books and finish interrogating all of these mostly innocent workers.

The majority of them were normal, nothing suspicious at all. However, um, there were a few who had questionable thoughts about Carlos and I. I don't wanna talk about it but, Carlos had to go to the washroom because of it.

"So, where were you the night of the heist?" I asked the worker in front of me.

"Heist? Is that what we're calling it now? That was nothing if you ask me. I've seen worse, like the Borg Heist thirty years ago." This new person seemed cocky, glancing between us with a condescending look.

"Just answer the damn question," Carlos stated, slamming his hands down on the table.

We've gone on the route of bad-cop/good-cop. I was clearly the good-cop while Carlos chose bad-cop because I can't act tough for the life of me, but he could. I guess being an ex-actor has its perks.

"Jeez, chill... fine, I was off work that time, went to get a latte with my girlfriend." The person holding their hands up as if surrendering.

"Location?"

"How the hell am I supposed to remember that?" they snapped.

"Calm down, um..." I glanced down the profile sheet I was given.

I didn't want to mislabel the person in any way, long story, so I usually call everyone they. Apparently, I was right with my gut saying this person was a girl.

"Ms. Vera?"

"Yes, that's my name, so what? Gonna shame me for being lesbian too?" she challenged, sitting up in her seat.

"No, ma'am, we're just checking for your name." Oh god... this lady's scary.

"Whatever..."

_I'm not getting anything off of her. She seems pretty clean, maybe try asking more specific stuff like what does she do and where she was before the latte_, Carlos suggested.

"Um... where were you before the robbery?"

"Getting dinner," she answered, examining her nails.

"Why did you get a latte after dinner? Why so late as well?"

"Cause it's a free nation, ain't it? I can do what I fucking want when I fucking want." She stood up, slapping her hands onto the table too.

"Um..." I glanced at Carlos, getting antsy now.

_Wanna switch?_ he suggested.

I nodded my head before moving aside from him to continue the interrogation while I read her mind.

"What's your job in this factory?"

"Computer tech," she stated, seeming uneasy suddenly.

_God... I hope he doesn't find out about my side hustle. Fuck... I forgot these guys could read minds, I need to just forget about the sex I had-_

"Um... I'm gonna take f-five," I stuttered, grabbing the door and rushing out as my face started heating up.

I raced towards the washrooms, almost running into Shima and Ingrid, the both of them giving me odd looks before I slipped into the washroom.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to shake out the sexual thoughts Ms. Vera thought.

_Oh god... this is really a curse and a gift, isn't it? I can help people, but then I also hear all this sexual junk too..._

I shook my head, opening my eyes and realizing I was crouched behind the door. I pushed myself up, walking over to the sink and splashing water on my face after I removed my mask.

"Ugh... at least I'm not getting turned on, that'll be disgusting..." I grumbled to myself before slipping my mask back on and leaving.

It took me a minute to find the interrogation room again, and once inside, we had a new person.

"You okay?" Carlos inquired.

"Y-yeah, fine now," I responded.

"Anyway, Mr. Paradop, where were you the night of the robbery?" he asked the grey-haired man in front of me as I focused on entering his mind.

"I was cleaning and disinfecting the lab benches in the testing facility," the man responded in a gentle, grandfatherly way.

_Ooh... I should buy my granddaughter a ninja toy once these guys get popular. I can even tell her I met two of them!_

His thoughts seemed so genuine and sweet, I wished I had a paternal guardian like that for me now.

Six years ago, my father passed away in a hydro-plant accident. According to his coworkers, he made them all leave before he shut down the power himself, getting killed. He sacrificed himself to save so many people... I wish he could see me now. He was the one that introduced the ninjas to me...

"Um..."

I realized Carlos was staring at me then. Huh, guess I must've zoned out.

"Y-you're free to go, sir," I stated, gesturing towards the door.

"Thank you, it was nice talking to you two young men," he replied with a nod before leaving.

After the door shut behind him, Carlos turned back towards me.

"You good, man?"

"Yeah, fine, really," I answered.

"Did you-"

"She was thinking about sex, I wanted to avoid overhearing that." I shuddered at the memory.

Carlos covered his mouth, trying to cover up the fact he was laughing.

"God, don't bring this up to the others," I begged.

"Uh-huh, they'll figure it on their own."

"How?"

"You tend to share your thoughts with people when you're nervous," he revealed, shocking me.

"What?" I exclaimed, instantly worried.

Does this mean Shima knows-

"Dude, I'm kidding, but I promise I'll keep this between us. The others won't find out unless they learn to read your mind, or you tell them."

"You better not," I warned.

"I won't tell them, let's just get through the last person, 'kay?"

"Fine..." I walked over to the door and opened it, waving in the next worker.

(Zoltar's P.O.V.)

Once we started searching the room, things started to get fishy. For starters, Shima called us on our watches and warned us to be careful of the police because they might be in on this heist. Secondly, the officer that led us there kept on giving us odd looks.

I get that isn't a great point, but it still was kinda odd. The police force asked for _our_ help, shouldn't they be grateful then? Unless their pride is hurt for accepting help from us.

"Those guys are sketchy," Mack commented after the officer left us to check out the place.

"Yeah, some of them kept on giving us odd looks," Mika agreed.

"Well, we're wearing brightly coloured suitsss," I pointed out, pushing a crate to the side.

"True," she nodded in agreement before climbing up on a shelf.

"Um... you're sure that'sss safe?" I questioned, gazing up at her.

"Yeah, I'm-" She lost her footing, slipping and falling. Fortunately enough, I managed to catch her.

"S-s-sorry," she stammered, blushing as I set her back on the ground.

"It'ssss fine," I replied awkwardly.

"Ahem..."

We both turned, seeing Mack staring at us with a mild look of anger on his face.

Was he jealous or something? It wasn't like I liked Mika in any way, she was just a friend, that's all.

"You're pretty strong for a fourteen-year-old," he remarked, his voice filled with jealousy.

"Well, I am the earth massster," I pointed out.

"L-let's just get back to work," Mika suggested instead, still looking flustered and embarrassed.

"Yeah, let's," I agreed.

We continued checking the place out until an officer came up to us and told us that the commissioner wanted to see us. We reluctantly obliged and followed them, but I couldn't shake the odd feeling growing inside me. Something about this whole mission, the whole robbery seemed... off. Why would the police mess with the nindroids? What if it was some workers? Who would want that much morphine and chemicals? Drug dealers, maybe, but what's the motive? Why were we called in if the police tampered with the evidence?

Soon we had to change out of our hazmat suits and headed out.

"Well, from what I heard, none of you guys found anything." Commissioner Alvaro seemed mildly disappointed when he greeted us all again in the foyer of the factory.

The majority of us mumbled agreements, but I could tell the suspicion crossing his coworker's face. They didn't trust us, they thought we were lying. Of course, we were but, so was one of them.

"Sorry we couldn't be more helpful," Mika apologized sweetly.

"It's fine, you're just a bunch of kids with powers, what more could I expect? Even my best officers couldn't figure it out." The commissioner shook his head. "I'll let you go on now. We'll continue the case from here."

We all nodded our thanks before heading outside, getting hit by the frigid air.

Technology may be more advanced, but you can never control the weather. It was still frozen, but it was far from a wasteland. Well, depending on what you refer to as a 'wasteland'.

"So what should we do about this then?" Mack inquired, putting his hands behind his neck and stretching.

"Well, we can't do much, if there's corruption, exposing it will lead to some worst stuff," Carlos pointed out.

"Like how?" Ian questioned.

"Well, they might just get mad at us for accusing them, the public will learn to fear them and crime could rise. Also, how do we root out the real criminals? It can't be that easy to take down a whole police force," he elaborated.

"Yeah... you do have a good point," Mika agreed, shivering.

"Maybe we should continue this conversation back at the monastery?" I suggested.

The others nodded in agreement before we all went into our respected rides and took off, or teleported there.

* * *

Once we got back to the monastery, Master Jun questioned us on how the mission went. We all had mixed opinions about telling her the truth, judging from our facial expressions. Some of us wanted to tell her the truth, but some of us wanted to keep it a secret.

"What is it? It's better if you tell me now."

I hated how well our master could read our facial expressions.

"Um... well," Ian began explaining what Shima and Ingrid uncovered and our theories.

After a long pause, she drew a sharp breath before responding.

"I see why you withheld this information, but for the police to trust us, and more importantly, the _nation_, we must tell them. They might be angry about you not telling them sooner, but they will hopefully understand the reason. I will contact the commissioner later today. For now, you must train." She seemed to understand our reason, but she still appeared mildly disappointed.

We all mumbled our replies.

"Louder," she snapped.

"Yes, Master Jun," we all repeated in unison.

She nodded before waving us off.

We all walked outside, choosing to spar one-on-one with each other rather than cooperating as a team on the course.

We may have bonded a bit, but most of us still hate each other, like Mack, Carlos, and Ian. Mack hated both of them, Ian hates both of them, and we all get moderately annoyed by Ian's history lessons. Unfortunately, I have to share a room with all three of them. The only thing we all have in common is that we're all ninjas and elementals. Well, if you don't count the fact we all enjoy reading except for Mack.

"And then that bitch glared at me!" Mack exclaimed, sparring with Carlos once more.

"Well, we already established most of the police force hates us," Carlos pointed out.

I was sparring Ian mainly out of fear of sparring Mika again. I'm pretty sure Mack had a crush on her and when he saw me catch her today, that made him jealous. I definitely don't wanna get on his bad side, he's scary! As well, I think Mika likes me too, so that doesn't help either.

She's great, but she's not my type. She's funny, optimistic, and cheerful, she was way better than the other girls. I'm not making fun of them, it's just the other girls are so... negative. Shima acts like she's better than all of us and Ingrid's always depressed, which concerns me.

Overall, there aren't a lot of female options for me. It would be nice if we had another female for our team.

(Shima's P.O.V.)

"I think we should have a name," Ian announced during dinner.

"Yeah, we all have names already doofus," Mack replied, playing with his food.

"Not that kind of name, I mean a _team_ name," he replied.

"Whatcha mean?" Mika looked confused now.

God, do none of these guys know what a team name means?

"Well, like you know how superheroes have cool names? Like the 'Fantastic Five' or the 'Virtue League', something along those lines."

"Yes, a team name does seem more efficient than just referring you guys as ninjas. What were you thinking of?" Master Jun agreed with the idea, annoying me.

Isn't it bad enough that I'm a ninja? Now I have to get some stupid name too? Ugh... can my life get any more revolting?

"Um... maybe like, Ninja Force, or something," he answered.

Mack snorted, "Yeah, cause that doesn't seem like a name for a bunch of kids."

"Well, do you have any bright ideas, Mr. High-and-Mighty?"

"I don't think we should have a name in general, seems stupid."

Finally, someone agrees with me.

"Maybe just an emblem or something, like ninja stars or katanas."

Nevermind, that's worse.

"Yeah, no, I agree with the team name. Maybe something related to us specifically?" Mika suggested instead.

"Maybe our powersss?" Zoltar offered.

"Cause shadow, amber, fire, ice, water, mind, earth, and lightning just, roll off the tongue," I responded sarcastically, exaggerating the word 'roll'.

"Maybe something about us as a whole? There's seven of us, maybe something with seven in it?" Carlos offered.

"The Spectacular Seven!" Ian exclaimed.

"Yeah, no, that's worse than Ninja Force and it makes us seem like a bunch of nine-year-olds." I rejected his idea quickly.

"Okay, what're your suggestions, Ms. Pessmistic-as-Hell?" Mika inquired, rolling her eyes at me.

"No name in general, keep us anonymous."

"No, I like the idea of you guys having a name. Carlos might be onto something about having the number seven in there," Master Jun pointed out.

Ugh... now the crone agrees. We're probably gonna get stuck with some shitty name if I don't suggest something good fast.

"Um... maybe something pertaining to our history? Like the ninjas themselves, the past ones," I proposed.

"Maybe... Ian, any ideas? You're the ninja expert," Carlos stated, causing us all to focus on the brunette.

"Um... well, something that relates to them and us is our powers, obviously, but the name 'Power Seven' sounds cheesy and lame. We need something badass and shows we mean business."

So 'Spectacular Seven' and 'Ninja Force' weren't cheesy and lame in comparison? What the hell is wrong with him?

"Well, our powers are pretty badass in a name," Carlos said, "like, 'Lightning', 'Flame', or 'Shadows of Elementals'."

"I like the shadow one," said Mack while sitting up straighter.

"But we need something more inclusive. Maybe the Herculean Seven?" Mika suggested.

"Nah, sounds like we're apart of some great prophecy or something." Ian shook his head in disagreement.

"Okay, um... oh, I got an idea."

The others all turned to me then.

"Well, what is it?" Mack asked, interested.

"Well, according to my grandparents, people used to refer to generations of babies by these weird names that retained to what was happening globally then. I heard there was a generation called 'Millenials' and another one 'Gen Z'. Maybe we can have a name like that?" I offered.

"Huh, that's not that bad. Do you guys know what generation we are?" Mika inquired, turning to the rest of us.

"I never even heard of that term before today," Mack remarked.

Then I heard faint mumbling. I looked around for the source before realizing it came from Ingrid. Of course, it came from the depressed and quiet girl.

"What did you say?" I asked her, "Repeat it."

Ingrid looked up from her untouched plate of food, glancing around at the others before whispering her answer once more.

I sighed an exasperated sigh. "So we can hear you?"

"Um..." Her eyes darted around the room. "O-our generation is called 'Gen Xr'..."

"What? Why 'Xr'?" Mack questioned, confused.

"Well, X usually represents ten, so it's been like what, couple hundred years, which would be multiplied by that ten. Then, the 'r' comes into play because it represents the letter system the generations were named after. They go from A to Z, which means our generation is the eighteenth in the rotation." I calculated the math quickly in my head while using common logic.

The others stared at me, sans Master Jun, in shock.

"How the hell did you do that?" Mack exclaimed.

"Math. Genius. Remember?"

"Wait, what?"

Ugh... these guys are imbeciles.

"Okay, so it's 3015, correct?"

I get nods.

"And when did the ninjas originally protect Ninjago?"

"Well, roughly three thousand years ago, give or take," Ian supplied.

"So, it has been ten full rotations since then, mainly because of some plague epidemic and stuff-"

"Wait, if there are twenty-six letters-"

"As I said, the plague epidemic decimated the population and made many people infertile, so of course the generations and the system suffered greatly.

"Anyway, each generation was named after a letter, like Gen Z or Gen X. We're the tenth rotation since the Restart, so that's where the X comes into play. If we were the fifth, it would be V, or third, III. Then the r comes in after to represent what generation we're from within that rotation, get it? Archaically, they did every fifty years or something for a generation, but they started late and when the Restart and the Dragon Wars happened, it messed up the whole system." I took a deep breath, out of breath from my long-ass explanation.

After a brief pause and the others glancing at each other while I downed my glass of water, they decided on our name.

"So, we all agree with it?" Mika double-checked, looking at all of us.

We nodded in agreement.

"Well then, guess you'll be known as Gen Xr7 from now on," Master Jun proclaimed.

(Carlos' P.O.V.)

Every day, Shima amazes me. I couldn't stop thinking about how she flawlessly did the math and the hidden passion in her voice as she talked about the history. It was brief, but it was still stunning to watch her so in her element.

Ugh... I sound like some cheesy romantic in a rom-com or a creepy stalker. Unfortunately, I know both all too well. One of the many perks and downfalls of being a famous celeb.

I was sitting on my bed then, reading a travel pamphlet, which was one of the many I collected while travelling Ninjago as a movie star.

My mom used to let me do one thing on my own, anything long as it's legal and won't harm my public image. I chose, collecting trinkets from my travels. Fortunately enough, my fans found that endearing and my mother insisted I continued.

The pamphlet I was reading was about the Dark Island and how many people try populating it, but all the attempts failed. One attempt even indirectly started the world-renown, Restart.

The Restart was one of the biggest historical events, sitting up there with the Serpentine and Dragon Wars, of course. It happened long before I was born and just as the remaining ninjas died off. According to legend, once the memory cores of Zane and PIXAL Julian were harvested and planted into the computers, an overflow of new information became open to the whole world. Everyone had accessibility to electricity and wifi then, also, it rebooted the whole internet too! That's why it was called the Restart because once the famed protectors of Ninjago finally disappeared and technology became more advanced, it was like the entire world was set on Restart.

Naturally, this prosperity didn't last long.

Apparently not long after, a huge epidemic swept through the nation, killing off elementals and making numerous people infertile. Many people believed their elemental powers died with them, but Master Jun stated it didn't and was just passed on.

"Hey, Carlos, you're coming?" A head popped up on the side of my top bunk.

"Coming to what, Ian?"

"The other's were thinking about... sneaking out tonight to go to this party Shima was invited too by one of her so-called 'lackeys'. A girl named Shelbee said Shima could bring all of us!"

"But... Master Jun doesn't know, correct?" I raised my eyebrow.

"Mr. Famous is too scared to break the rules? You won't be the only one staying here, so don't worry your insured little head," Mack mocked from the door, slipping on his basketball jacket.

"Who's going and who's staying?"

"Well, we're all going," Zoltar replied.

"And most of the girls except for Ingrid, she said she rather stay here than get in trouble," Ian added.

"What a priss," Mack grumbled under his breath, standing at the door.

"You guys going through the front door?"

"What? No, we're going through the girls' room, it's closer to the garage," he answered before walking out.

"Well?"

"Um..."

Would it be a good idea? When was the last time I did something fun for myself? What if someone recognized me? What if-

"Dude, you might've come into contact with the master of form. That means you could literally change your appearance if you're worried about that," Ian pointed out before walking out.

I took a deep breath, mulling over this. "Okay, Zoltar, tell them to wait up. I'll be out in a minute."

He nodded in response before leaving as well.

I hopped off my bed, putting my phone on mute before placing it onto the nightstand. I moved away from it then, focussing on changing my eye colour or my hair colour. If I could just change one thing, it would instantly be harder for anyone to recognize me. It's good that they're a lot of lookalikes out there too.

I tried thinking of a darker eye colour because mine was currently blue, which stands out pretty well. _Hmm... maybe green or amber, those are pretty distinct colours. However, if I really want to be harder to recognize, I'll go with brown. Yeah, brown would work pretty well to my advantage being one of the most common eye colours out there. _

I remembered what Master Jun told me about changing my form. Recently, she started giving us one-on-one training to practice our powers. Since I had technically the most powers, I came first in training. She always reminded me to stay focus and concentrate, distractions could cause my powers to go haywire and possibly hurt someone.

_Remember to direct all your energy to what power you want to unlock. Living a life of a star means you could've encountered every elemental in existence, which means you're extremely powerful. The more power you have, the more unstable you can become. Always remember your values, for they will help you in your time of need_. Her advice echoed in my mind as I did the transformation.

I moment later when glancing at the mirror as I tiptoed/ran down the hall, I saw my eyes had turned to a dark brown.

"S-sorry I'm late," I whispered to the others, panting as they all stood in a huddle by the window.

Shima raised her eyebrow. "You changed your eyes."

"Yeah, Ian suggested I could," I responded, straightening and joining their huddle.

"Y'know what to do, Ingrid?" Mika asked the lonely-looking on a bottom bunk.

The girls' room looked identical to ours. However, one of their bunks were, of course, empty because there were only three of them. I wonder why Master Jun didn't just get a regular single bed. Probably worried they'll fight over it.

"Y-yes..." she murmured in reply, glancing at her bag briefly before looking at us.

"It's okay if you're uncomfortable with it. You don't have to if you don't want to," Ian stated to her reassuringly.

She gave him a small smile before shaking her head. "It's fine, I'll keep watch and text Mika or Shima if Master Jun starts questioning you guys."

"Thanks, you're a lifesaver," Mika stated before opening the window slowly.

Once it was opened, she dropped a rope, which I had no clue where she got from, out the window. Then, I grab the other end and tied it to the bunkbed post to secure it.

"Ready to have fun and break some rules?" Mika inquired, an adventurous glint in her eyes.

"Yep," the rest of us agreed in unison before we all climbed down the rope into the garage.

Mika quickly filled me in as Shima started up her car. They decided to carpool to avoid suspicion.

"We're gonna party till 3 am, at the latest. Then, we all hop into her car and get back here before Master Jun realizes we left."

"I feel like she already knows," I stated uncomfortably as we loaded the cramped car.

"Why couldn't we take my jet?" Mack complained, squeezed between Ian, Zoltar, and I.

"Well, taking a jet to a party would arouse more suspicion. We're taking a big enough risk in my car, it might've been on the news. However, my lackey said she'll be able to hide my car in the garage under the tarp with a special lock," Shima responded from the driver seat, turning on the ignition.

Then, we were off.

(Keyna's P.O.V.)

My mission was simple enough: cross paths and befriend at least one of the ninjas at this party. We got Akuma to influence one of the ninjas' friends to invite and host a party in the Alferdy district in New Ninjago City.

Akuma and Master gave me information on all the ninjas that were attending, their likes/interests, and any more important details like their appearance or names. Good thing Akuma was spying at them tonight or else I would've had to make small talk with a suicidal girl about paintings.

As I drove to the party on a motorcycle I borrowed, I ran over my identity and theirs. My name was the same, except for the last because it would've made me too recognizable. There were approximately a hundred Keynas in the city anyway.

The earth ninja was a Serpentine, his name was Zoltar and he was the son of the Venomari tribe leader. Pretty powerful then, he could create earthquakes and make people delusional with his venom.

Shima Song, acclaimed mathlete of Ninjago, apparently super famous in the nerd world. She was the master of lightning and was friends with Shelbee Sarton, the girl we tricked. Well, a friend was a stretch. From what we know, she refers to her as a 'lackey'.

Next was Mika Takahashi, water and ice elemental. We couldn't find much dirt on her, actually. We just know she was born in Jamanikai village then moved to the city when her father got a job at Borg.

Then there was Mack Arian, who was this hotheaded jock that picked a fight with anyone who pissed him off, which was like everyone he crossed paths with. He was the master of shadow, so I'm glad. Imagine if his element was _fire_? Damn, that wouldn't end well.

Ian Flores, and we actually have a history with him. Akuma won't tell me, but he encountered this elemental before. All they're willing to tell me is that he's obsessed with the ninjas and he was the master of mind, so I should be careful what I say or think.

Lastly was Carlos Ramos, who was a famous actor. Akuma said he changed his eye colour, so I should watch out for any lookalikes. He has an odd attraction towards travel, so that was the main focus of conversation if I meet him. As well, he was the master of amber.

There was one more elemental, but Akuma was gonna deal with her, which was the suicidal girl I mentioned before. Ingrid Lee, master of fire. Apparently, her mother died because of her powers, so we predict a similar outcome for her daughter as well.

"I'm in position, you're ready?" Akuma inquired, communicating to me through my phone.

"Y-yeah, I'm ready, good luck," I replied, parking my motorcycle near a cluster of trees before locking it.

"I don't need it, but you will. I recommend befriending Ian and Mack first, they'll be the best bet to getting into the friend group," he advised before ending the call.

I took a deep breath before pocketing my phone and walking up the hill to the party.

Halfway up the hill, I spotted the ninjas, recognizing them from the pictures Akuma and Master showed me. They all were in a racing car the news reported belonged to the master of lightning. Geez... this is just _too_ easy.

I walked into the party, waving politely at Shelbee, who was greeting the dozens of people going in.

"How's it going?" I asked with a fake smile.

"Stressful, have you seen Shima? You've heard of her before?"

Shelbee thinks I'm one of their friends, so I guess Akuma did I good job tricking her. Can't be hard to trick these guys... right?

I mingled with guests, which ranged from humans to Serpentine. I was surprised they came all the way here considering one of them was our informant.

"Keyna, surprised to see you here," Tyson, son of the Hypnobrai general, said to me.

"Same goes to you, didn't peg you for a human party snake."

"Wanted to branch out, y'know, for next week. I need to gather intel and stuff."

"Well, you're old friend Zoltar's gonna be here." I casually dropped this information, knowing what he'll do with this information.

Tyson agreed to help us to gain power and become the proclaimed Snake King, which used to belong to the Hynobrai until about thirty years ago. He wants power, and we're willing to give that to him long as he helps us.

As well, he bullied Zoltar as children, so apparently, Zoltar's afraid of him. Having him at the party just makes it more and more interesting.

"That runt? Why is he here?" He raised his eyebrow before sipping his drink.

"His _team_ is here too."

"Ugh... hate that runt so much. According to legend, my tribe was supposed to inherit the earth master's powers, but the offspring chose the Venomari general over _ours_." His voice was filled with resentment and spite. It was clear he was also jealous of Zoltar, but he won't say it.

"Well, you could always challenge him to the Slither Pit match," I offered.

"I could, but I'll save my strength for next week," he said with a smirk.

"Okay then, but you can always taunt him."

"True," he agreed, "well, until next time." He nodded his head to me before wandering off into the crowds.

I smiled before venturing further, occasionally stopping and talking to random strangers who offered me drinks for some reason, but I declined. I had a mission, and I was gonna succeed.

"Okay, meet you guys at the car in a couple of hours," a black-haired girl said to her group of six.

_Mika_, I realized. Casually, I walked in her direction, _accidentally_ running into her.

"Oh, sorry," I apologized.

"It's fine," she replied with a smile.

After an awkward pause, I decided to strike up a conversation.

"I'm Keyna, by the way," I introduced.

"Mika," she stated.

"Um... so how were you invited to this party?"

Oh god, why am I so awkward? I'm usually not this awkward, and it's not like this girl is that attractive. Well, she isn't ugly but-

"One of my friends was allowed to bring a guest or two," she answered, "what about you?"

"A friend of a friend," I responded.

"Oh cool..."

I sighed. "This isn't just awkward for me, right?"

She laughed, shaking her head. "Yeah, I'm not great at starting conversations either."

"Yeah, but I kinda wanted to talk someone new."

Her eyes lit up like she had an idea. "You wanna dance then?"

I felt my face heat up, which could be for numerous reasons. There were a lot of people, maybe that's why it was hot. Of course, it could be because a girl I just met and supposed to kill asked me to dance.

Probably the last one.

"Sure," I replied nervously.

She grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the dance floor.

"You like dancing?" she inquired as we swayed along to the loud music.

_Thank god it wasn't a slow dance_, I thought to myself.

"Yeah, it's one of my hobbies, well, besides video games," I answered with a shrug.

This was actually true. I really enjoyed dancing and playing video games but, I never get the chance to because of training.

"Ooh, same, I love dancing but none of my friends like it. I'm glad I met someone with good taste."

We continued dancing until the slow song played, which caused us to both walk off the dance with red faces. _Probably from the exertion of energy_, I thought logically.

"Wanna get a drink?" she offered, "I can introduce you to some of my friends if you want."

I tried not to seem too eager with my response. "Sure, fine with me. If I try looking for my friend, they might be out back smoking or drinking."

She nodded before leading me to the side, grabbing a bottle of water for both of us before bringing me towards her friends on the opposite of the room.

"Hey guys," she greeted cheerfully.

"Hi," Zoltar, I assume, replied, staring at me.

"Hi, I'm Keyna," I stated.

"Zoltar," he responded, still giving me an odd look.

_I've never met him before... have I? I doubt it..._ I reasoned to myself. There could be a million reasons why he's staring at me. Maybe he thinks I'm cute or something.

"Carl," the guy with red and brown hair said.

Oh, wow, that's a bad alias. If you put two and two together, it's obvious he's Carlos Ramos.

"Y'know, you remind me of someone," I began, looking at Carlos.

He tried to look calm, but I could see him tense up. So much for being a nation-acclaimed actor.

"You look my cousin Darell after he fell into a lake," I teased him, laughing.

The others laughed too, but more uncomfortably.

The other people that were with us were Ian and Mack. Shima was likely bossing around her lackey if she wasn't here, or maybe she's embarrassed to be seen in public with these guys.

"You two are?" I gestured to Mack and Ian even though I clearly knew who they were.

"Mack," he stated, crossing his arms and looking at me up and down.

"I'm Ian," the other boy chimed in.

"Cool," I nodded politely.

Oh god... more unpleasant silence.

I'm a 'go-with-the-flow' type of girl, I don't _create _flow for heavens' sake. I'm a follower, not a leader in the slightest. How am I supposed to initiate a conversation?

"So, you're from around here?" Ian inquired, saving us from looking at each other in silence.

"Um... I'm from the Banchi district, but I have friends from here," I lied swiftly.

"Oh cool, same," Ian replied.

"You mentioned you liked video games, right? What's your favourite?" Mika asked afterwards.

"Um... well, I like this really old game you guys probably never heard of," I stated, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Chess?" Mack guessed sarcastically.

"Chess is pretty fun if you understand the fundamentals," Carlos pointed out.

Those two began arguing as I watched. Believe me, watching them gives me more intel than just straight-up talking to them.

When people are upset, they tend to show a side you've never seen before. You learn something new from the way they behave and their expressions. A good example would be how Carlos crosses his arm and seemed not to care about winning or losing, showing that he's not an arguing type of person. On the other hand, Mack moved his arms so they were straight, balling up his fists as well until his knuckles turned white. That goes to show he has an extremely short-fuse, which is great to know if you wanna get him riled up.

The night continued that way even when Shima came by. I could barely get a chance to talk to her before some nerds came by and asked for her autograph. Then, her lackey came by and took her away.

By 3 am, I saw the others preparing to leave. I manage to get Mika and Zoltar to exchange numbers with me while the others headed down a set of stairs with a 'DO NOT ENTER' sign on it.

"Maybe we can hang out sometime in the future," I stated to them.

"Yeah, maybe," Mika said before walking down the stairs with Zoltar.

I turned around to hide my smirk. Oh, these ninjas don't even know what's gonna happened to them. However, for now, I'll let them relax. They'll let their guard down and then I'll strike.

"Keyna?"

I turned, seeing Mx. Dealer standing at the doorway with a cigarette in hand.

"I have the money if you have the boxes," I said, walking up to him.

"Good, how much?"

"How much do you have?"

"I have two crates that I managed to fit inside this pouch I nicked from a rich kid. It can fit all twenty-four crates in it," they offered, my eyes lighting up.

"I'll take it."


	6. Control

** (A/N: I'm so sorry this is late. I got distracted by my other fanfic and stuff. Enjoy this chapter and next week I'll post the next part! As in next week, I mean like April 12-18)**

(Mika's P.O.V.)

Surprisingly, we did not get caught sneaking out for the party! On the other hand, Ingrid was acting weird when we came back. She seemed more... depressed than usual. Note to self: get her a therapist.

"Are you okay?" I asked her after breakfast.

She was sitting on the bottom bed of our bunk, fiddling with a pen. "I'm... fine."

I sighed, falling back onto my top bunk. "I don't believe you."

"Why do you bother then?" she inquired.

"Because hopefully one day I'll catch you off guard and you'll tell me." I peeked my head over the side of the bed, hanging upside down.

She cracked a small smile from the back of her bed. "You're a good... roommate."

Master Jun was training one-on-one with Shima, so she said the rest of us could relax because we all looked 'oddly' tired at breakfast. From all the yelling, either the boys were sparring, playing video games, or arguing while Ingrid and I were just relaxing in our room.

"Hm... should we get a proper dresser for our room? Or anything else? Cause the place looks so... bare." I gazed around our mostly empty room.

There was, of course, our two bunk beds, which directly across from each other. Then there was the closet where we shoved our weapons and suitcases.

Of course, each of our bunks was different compared to each other.

Mine had some books crammed into the corners, some newspaper clippings, and a few trinkets from home. Well, when I said a few, I mean like three things, a family photo and two birthday presents.

My parents were never really around when I was growing up so, yeah. We aren't really that close, they were always just so busy to spend time with me.

Anyway, back to our room.

Ingrid just had her backpack shoved underneath while her bed remained remarkably bare. She had no photos, no posters, nothing to really signify it belonged to her. Well, I think she does have some stuff but she always hides it inside her bag.

I wonder why she doesn't hang anything up?

Lastly was Shima, who won the coin toss to get the top bunk on the other bunk. It was just decorated with a map of the Dark Island from this real big investigation three years ago and some scarcely placed textbooks. Figures though, she's a genius after all. She probably spends hours reading those things.

"We can ask Master Jun if we can paint our bunks or something," Ingrid suggested.

"Ooh, good idea! I'll ask her after she finishes her training with Shima."

* * *

I proposed the idea during lunch. The others agreed with the idea about making our rooms more unique like the boys wanted a bookshelf and a couple of bean bags. However, Master Jun seemed wary about it.

"Where do you suppose we get the money for these renovations?" she inquired.

"Um..." I looked to the others for help with this.

"I can see if my mother left anything in my bank account," Carlos offered uncomfortably.

"What about Shima? She's probably loaded," Mack suggested before turning to her, "aren't you? Going to the preppiest school, you probably shower in gold coins."

Shima scoffed. "As if _I_ would give you guys my money. I'll use it for myself."

"Selfish much?" Mack questioned.

"Life doesn't give you handouts, so why should I?"

"Can you not be a priss, for like, three seconds?"

"Says you, you're always trying to pick a fight with every-"

"You just act all high and mighty- and what the hell do you mean? I don't pick a fight-"

"Yes, you _fucking_ do! You just can't last two holy minutes without-"

"Since when do I-"

"Right fucking now!" Shima exclaimed, slamming her hands down on the table before she and Mack were scolded by Master Jun.

"I will not have that language used here! You must learn to respect each other despite your vast differences. Shima, you act selfishly at times and you must realize this. Mack, you start arguments constantly with your roommates and the girls. You must keep your anger in check or else our enemies could manipulate it to their advantage."

They both slumped in their seats, seeming angry not only at each other but at Master Jun as well.

"And back to the room redecorating, we simply do not have the funds to do it. The police station _is_ offering us a grant for our help, however, because of the incident at the factory, they might reconsider. If we get them to trust us again, they will reoffer the grant to us," Master Jun elaborated.

"Um... how'd we get them to trust us again?" Ian asked.

"Well, by aiding them on missions and solving crimes."

"In that case," I began, "any new crimes? Missions? Issues we need to resolve?" I wanted to get back outside and use my powers. I wanted to unlock my full potential ASAP. Sitting around and doing nothing won't help me achieve anything.

"Yeah, I'm ready to get back out there and do something." Carlos nodded in agreement.

Master Jun shook her head. "None so far. For now, I want you guys to work as a team and collaborate. Like a wise person once said, 'On a team, it's not the strength of the individual players, but it is the strength of the unit and how they all function together'."

None of us responded, knowing all too well what she was gonna say next.

"Now off you guys go, three hours on the obstacle course shall do you well."

(Mack's P.O.V.)

I _do not_ pick a fight with everyone I meet. That's a big, fat, fucking lie. Yeah, _occasionally_ I pick a fight, but they always deserve it, y'know? They just piss me off and they earn a good yelling.

The only thing I got from Master Jun was that crappy quote. God, why couldn't she have chosen a well-written poem? I understand those and-

_ Shit, I'm thinking about poems again_, I realized. _I got to stop fucking do this, it's in my past, that's not who I am anymore. I'm just a jock, not some nonsense poet._ I berated myself mentally before getting my yoroi on.

Okay, I admit, I _used_ to be a poetry geek as a kid. I loved all those rhymes and similes, but that isn't considered cool so why should I bother anymore? I quit a long time ago and it made my dad happy so who cares? Yeah, my mom was sad I gave up even though I had such a 'talent', but does it matter when I'm a basketball player? Now I'm a ninja, and I'm stuck doing this while I rather just play ball and make my dad proud.

"Okay, should we all go at once?" Mika inquired as we all stood outside together.

"I think we should, Master Jun _did_ say she wanted us to work as a team," Ian pointed out.

"Didn't we already finish the stupid course? Why are we doing it again?" I questioned.

"Well," Master Jun began, walking towards us with a cup of tea, probably, "this time you won't be able to use your powers. Only your battle prowess."

"What?" I exclaimed, "Why can't we use our powers? I thought you wanted to train us to harness our powers or whatever? Also, we barely passed last time without our powers!"

"There will come a day when you will face an enemy who can take away your power. You will only be able to use your mind and pure skill, and that will decide your fate. As well, if you 'barely passed', then that must mean you must train more to perfect your abilities."

"Oh geez, so uplifting..." I grumbled sarcastically.

She whacked me on the head again.

"Hey!"

"Shut up and focus on the course," she ordered.

We all lined up together, looking at each other before the obstacles were activated.

Naturally, our pure skill and teamwork failed horribly. Mika, Zoltar and I managed to get through most of the obstacles before failing halfway. The others all failed beforehand.

"Again, and as a _team_," Master Jun ordered.

The majority of us groaned before obliging. We repeated the course, again and again, failing every time.

My thoughts drifted back towards poetry as I slid underneath a collapsing wall. Ugh... why does my mind keep on fixating on it? Every time I try to put it into my past, it comes up again to haunt me.

_ (Flashback)_

_ I waved goodbye to my mother, who kissed me on the forehead, embarrassing me._

_ "Mom," I groaned, pushing her away as she hugged me._

_ "I'm going to miss you so much!" she exclaimed, her blonde locks hitting my face as she squeezed the life out of me._

_ "Mom! It's just school! You'll see me after, same time every day."_

_ "Yes, but now you're a ten-year-old boy, in a couple of years you'll be off to college and I won't be able to see you anymore."_

_ "Suzanne, you're smothering him," my dad warned from his car._

_ "Love you, see you after school. Have fun and be safe!" my mom said before waving me away._

_ I waved goodbye before sliding into the backseat of my dad's car._

_ "Trying out for the basketball team? Seasons starting soon," Dad stated, starting the car before pulling onto the road._

_ "I'm not sure, maybe the poetry club. I heard they're starting too!"_

_ My dad shook his head, looking dissatisfied. I sunk in my seat when I saw that. I _hated_ disappointing my dad._

_ "You would be _such_ a great basketball player! I know it, the coach knows it, and you should know it."_

_ "But Dad, I'm not interested in basketball all that much."_

_ "I was when I was your age, you should be too."_

_ I nodded my head before he went on a rant about how he led his team to the championships multiple times when he was in high school._

_ "I'm not boring you, am I, Mack?"_

_ I shook my head. "No, I like hearing about your stories." That was the truth._

_ I loved hearing about how he made it to the championships and his achievements. It made me want to succeed like him. I wanted to be remembered for something important as he was. I always hear from my PE teachers he was a legend in the sporting world._

_ My dad smiled into the mirror at my reply. "You're a good kid, y'know that, right?"_

_ "Just cause I have a good dad!" I responded as he parked me in front of the school._

_ "See you after school, champ! Don't do anything stupid!" he cautioned with a laugh as I slipped out the back and ran towards my school._

_ "Bye!"_

_ My joy soon ran out once I got into my class. The three toughest kids in my class, Gregory Lin, Emery Dang, and Alexander Cho, came up to me, smirking. I might have been as tall as them, but being lanky and talented at poetry didn't help. _

_ "Hey, Poet Boy's here now, got any haikus or rhymes?" Gregory mocked, grabbing my bag and dumping its contents on the table._

_ "Hey! That's _my_ stuff!" I exclaimed, looking around for any help._

_ As usual, the other kids kept their head downs and the teachers were nowhere in sight. These boys seemed to have that effect, scaring students and making the adults disappear. Well, it was an added bonus that no one liked me, but my parents didn't need to know that._

_ "Why else would we take it?" Emery inquired, looking through my stuff and throwing some of it to the side._

_ "Aha!" Alexander held up a red and brown book with a traditional binding like a trophy._

My poetry book_, I realized, getting scared._

_ "G-give it back!" I yelled at them trying to grab it out of his hands._

_ He seemed to anticipate this and chucked it at Emery. Soon, they were tossing it to each other while I struggled in the middle._

_ "Stop it! It's my-"_

_ "Oh, is Poet Boy gonna cry to his mommy now?" Gregory taunted, opening the book and bursting into laughter once he read the contents._

_ "What is it, Greg?"_

_ "Get a load of this bollucks!" he hollered, laughing._

_ "'_Blue, the colours of your eyes, the colour of the sky, brown, the colour of your hair, the colour of the ground,'_ ha, is this a love poem?" Gregory exclaimed, bending over and laughing._

_ I snatched the book out of his hands before running out of the classroom, feeling tears stream down my face. I kept on running, only one clear destination in mind._

_ I burst into the poetry room of the school, it being empty because school would be starting in minutes. I slammed the door shut, sinking to the floor and crying._

_ "I'm just a stupid poet, aren't I?" I said to no one in particular._

_ The bell rang, but I didn't move an inch. I stayed glued to the spot behind the door as the announcement went on. _

_ Then something came across my mind. An idea, a crazy one, but an idea. I knew how to get those bullies to stop bullying me. I knew how to get kids to like me. It would hurt, yeah, _a lot_, but it was worth it._

_ I went over to the corner of the room where Mrs. Valentino, the poetry teacher, kept her 'inspiration pieces'. It didn't take me long to find the matches._

_ I struck a match against the side of the box, the flame appearing on the red tip of it. I took a deep breath to steel myself before doing it._

_ (Flashback over)_

I shook my head out of the memory just in time to dodge a pole swinging at me.

"Stay focus, Mack!" Master Jun ordered me.

After that day in the poetry room, I was expelled for arson. It went on my permanent record, affecting what schools I could get into from that point on. My parents didn't understand why I did it, but I became a legend to my old classmates and future ones. Everyone knew who I was, everyone wanted to be around me because I was 'edgy' and 'cool' for setting the poetry room on fire.

I enjoyed the fame, yeah, _who wouldn't_. However, deep down the whole thing tore me apart.

I stood there for who knows how long as I watched the flames consume the room. I even tossed my own book in the flames, which was a gift from my mother for my birthday. I watched it all burn as a teacher grabbed me and dragged me outside.

"Mack!"

I turned just in time to see something fly towards me before my vision went black.

(Ingrid's P.O.V.)

All of rushed to Mack's unconscious figure, Master Jun shutting off the course immediately.

"He was distracted..." she grumbled, "Boys, carry him to the infirmary and get him an ice pack," she ordered the remaining boys.

They nodded, picking up Mack's body before shuffling towards the building once more.

"I will go in and deal with him," Master Jun stated before disappearing into the building as well.

Us girls stood outside, not having been given any clear instructions.

"Well, you guys wanna hang out at the mall or something?" Shima spun into a tornado, switching back into her regular clothes.

"You wanna hang out with, us?" Mika inquired, surprised.

"What? I can be a decent person when I want too."

"Sure, Ingrid?" Mika agreed, turning to me.

"Um... would Master Jun get-"

"She didn't tell us to continue," Shima pointed out.

"I g-guess so..." I admitted.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Mika stated quickly.

"N-no, it's fine, maybe I should get out more..."

After we all changed, we went down to the garage and started up Shima's car. It was the only vehicle that looked the least suspicious, that's why we took it.

"You want to invite anyone else?" Mika asked me, turning around from her front seat.

"Um... I don't know anyone really," I stated, which was sadly true.

I was bullied so much I just gave up making new friends. What's the point of making friends when in the end they leave you? Nothing lasts forever, so what's the point?

"What about you, Shima?" She turned to the driver.

"I don't bother myself with friends, only lackeys."

"Um, okay then, guess I'll invite that girl we met at the party." Mika shrugged, typing something on her phone.

"Keyna?" Shima guessed, raising her eyebrow.

I noticed then how stressed Mika looked. She hid it well, but I'm good at deciphering people's emotions. Well, it was the only thing I was good it.

She had minor bags under her eyes, but that could be just from partying last night. There was also minor acne on her face, but that could also be caused by the hormonal imbalance our bodies go through when we're going through puberty. She didn't have any tell-tale signs, but I could feel the stress emanating off of her.

"Who's Keyna?" I asked, focusing on their conversation over my inner speculations.

"A girl we met at the party. She's pretty chill," Mika elaborated.

"I don't know, something about her seems... off," Shima stated.

"What?"

"Don't you think it's a little weird she came to the party? I asked Shelbee about her and she said we know her, but we just met her that night, right?"

"You're just being paranoid."

"I'm not. Just something about that girl seems wrong but I don't know what."

"She's normal until proven creepy," Mika said before turning to me, "Ingrid, you're pretty observant, how about you check her out?"

"What?" I felt my cheeks flush in embarrassment.

"Not _that_ kind of check out," Shima grumbled, rolling her eyes.

"Still, I'm not observant," I argued.

"Yes, you are. You're great at telling how a person feels!" Mika exclaimed, "C'mon, I believe in you."

I sighed, giving up on arguing on them. What's the point of fighting when you're gonna lose anyway? I might be right but I'll lose anyway. It's not like I'm good at anything...

* * *

"Hi, I'm Keyna," the new girl introduced.

The moment I met her, I knew Shima was right. Something about this girl just seemed completely off. I didn't know what, but whatever it was seemed to emanate off her. There weren't any tell-tale signs, but I just had that feeling in my gut.

"I'm I-Ingrid," I replied, shrinking back into my baggy hoodie.

I only wear two things, my navy hoodie and my faded jeans. I gave up three years ago buying new clothes so I'm always wearing these two articles of clothing, of course, I wear shoes, socks, and other basic stuff that I don't want to get into.

"C'mon, let's get into this place," Shima stated, striding ahead of us into the mall.

"How's it going, Keyna?" Mika inquired, striking up a new conversation.

I watched Keyna carefully as the others suggested, but I tried my best not to stare because then that'll be creepy.

She had long, strawberry blonde hair and green eyes. She was of average height and wore a sweater and faded blue jeans as well. She also looked vaguely familiar to me, but I couldn't place where I recognized her from.

"What happened to your boyfriends?" Keyna inquired casually, twirling a strand of her hair.

Mika and Shima stopped and took a spit-take, if that was possible when you're not drinking anything, before staring at her while I shrunk further into my hoodie.

"Um, we're not in a relationship with them. They're just our friends," Mika denied while Shima looked mildly disgusted at the prospect.

"None of them are my type anyway." Shima flicked her hair behind her shoulder. "Let's just get shopping or whatever."

"Really? 'Cause I could tell those guys might have a crush on you guys," Keyna pointed out as we sped up to match pace with Shima.

"Pfft, who?"

"Well, I think Ian and Carl were checking you out."

"Well, Ian's annoying as hell."

"What about Carl?"

Shima stopped, tapping her chin before continuing, not looking back at us. "I don't like guys with brown eyes."

Shima may be the hardest to read out of all of us, but it was clear to me she had some sort of feelings towards Carlos. She actually didn't explicitly say she didn't like him, she just said she doesn't like guys with brown eyes. However, Carlos' natural eye colour was blue.

"What about you? Mack was couldn't stop staring at you when we danced." Keyna turned to Mika when she posed the question.

_They danced? I thought Mika liked Zoltar? She always tries to talk to him and junk. _

"Nah, he's not my type either. He's too hot-headed in my opinion," Mika dismissed with the shake of her head.

Once inside the mall, we passed by multiple multiple stores, not buying anything, just window shopping. We eventually stopped at a smoothie stand, the others getting a drink while I declined the offer.

I wasn't thirsty, I never was.

"There's nothing to do here. This place is kinda boring compared to the other districts," Keyna stated, stirring her drink with her straw.

"Well, Banchi doesn't have much besides good food." Mika shrugged, checking her phone.

Shima scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Banchi only has _decent_ food. Have you _been_ to Alferdy? Or Wangfujing? That's where the good stuff is. Expensive, but hella worth the price."

"Well, not all of us grew up in the richest districts in the city," Mika remarked.

"Well, Sapporo has some nice art shops," I suggested quietly.

The others paused, looking over at me, making me more self-conscious than I was already.

For starters, they were all way better looking than me. I had dry, dead hair. They had long, flowing, beautiful and healthy hair. They were skinny but curvy in the right places. They were confident, strong, and everything that I'm not and more. How can I compare to _them_?

"Sapporo has good malls and nice parks too," Shima agreed.

"We could go now," Keyna suggested more enthusiastically than I thought was needed.

However, before we could go, Shima, Mika, and I all got a group text from Master Jun to return to the monastery. She didn't _seem_ mad, but she didn't seem all that please in her message either.

"Oh, sorry, but we can't. Something just came up and-" Mika began nervously.

"No, it's fine, maybe another time." Keyna put on a fake-looking smile before waving goodbye to us. "See ya guys later then."

(Ian's P.O.V.)

"Ugh... that's what happened?" Mack, who had just woken up, inquired as we sat around him in the infirmary.

"Yeah, I think Master Jun's kinda mad at for you being distracted," Carlos stated.

We had just finished explaining to him what happened and how he ended up in the infirmary.

"Well, does it matter? It's just a small slip-up, anyone could've made the same mistake as I did," he grumbled, keeping the ice pack on the side of his head.

"Boys, come with me. Mack, you stay here and rest for now," Master Jun ordered, popping her head into the room.

Several minutes before, she had left after receiving a phone call. She claimed she would be right back and to remain with Mack just in case anything happened.

We complied, following her out of the room while Mack mumbled something under his breath that sounded like a string of curse words.

"Um... where are the girls?" Carlos asked, looking around.

We had walked by the window and saw the courtyard empty, the obstacle course still out there but untouched.

"They went out, I called them back. We have another mission in Nom, a notorious Hypnobrai gang is ravaging the town, pillaging it, and causing chaos. Multiple citizens have been put under their control in the ensuing panic, and the anti-venin is currently in the general's clutches but-" Master Jun before being interrupted.

"All the generals and leaders of Ninjago are at the Ninjago Summit on Elemental Island," Zoltar continued, a small look of fear crossing his face.

"Correct, and the only other form of helping those people is the Scarced FLute, however, the last one was rumour to have been destroyed by the Serpentine after the Great Devourer rose again and attacked Ninjago. The only way for us to get the song is by going through the memory cores of Zane Julian, but I need to run that through the police before doing so," she finished.

"Yeah, he had a recording so that's how he weakened the Great Devourer!" I exclaimed, remembering the story.

"Yes," she agreed, "but I will further brief you once the girls returned.

It wasn't long before the girls appeared in front of the monastery. Then, they were caught up before Master Jun completed her explanation of the mission.

"I need you six to go to Nom and stop, or at least restrain the Hypnobrai from creating any further damage. I will get there the moment I retrieve the recording and aid you. However, you must remember to _not_ look into the eyes of the Hypnobrai, lest you fall under their control. Being controlled and having your abilities would destroy the little reputation we have and put countless lives in danger," Master Jun warned with a stern expression, "understood?"

"Yes, we understand, Master Jun," we replied in unison, some more nervous than others.

"Now go and get to the town. Time is of the essence!"

We all quickly changed into our uniforms, hearing Mack complain about missing all the action.

"Maybe I should just teleport there when y'all leave..." he grumbled.

"Oh, no you won't, you're coming with me to the police station and staying there," Master Jun revealed, walking into the infirmary.

I flipped my hood up before running down the steps outside to the garage, slipping on my scooter with a depressed sigh.

The others get badass rides while I have a goddamn scooter? Maybe a motorcycle would be cool, but a _scooter_? Ugh... why did I get stuck with the worst ride out of them all?

* * *

Getting to Nom was easy. However, once there, the mission was anything but that. Citizens not under the gang's control were screaming and running around as if they were chickens with their heads cut off. Next, there were the people who were controlled, who were pillaging the place like a group of pirates, ripping stuff outta places with their creepy, glowing, red eyes. Then there were the actual criminals, who were chilling on a bunch of lawns chairs, smoking and drinking.

I glanced at the others before we ran behind a large boulder.

"Are you okay, Zoltar?"

I turned, seeing Ingrid look at the guy, who seemed to be getting visibility paler by the second. The only thing that surprised me about this was the fact Ingrid was talking.

"Y-yeah... I'm fine..." he mumbled, rubbing his shoulder.

"Okay, what's the plan to stall them?" I asked the others.

"We should get the uncontrolled citizens out of harm's way, like evacuate them to somewhere secure and moderately safe," Carlos suggested.

"Yeah, two of us could deal with them, two of us deal with the controlled ones, then the remaining-"

"That'sss the _worsssst_ Serpentine gang out there, you guysss realize that? It's not safe if we split up. It'll be easssier for them to control usss, there'sss ten of them and then two of usss versusss them," Zoltar whispered, interrupting Shima.

"Do you know who these guys are? I thought all the gangs were disbanded by the generals?" I questioned.

"Well, t-there supposssed too be, but o-one of them isss Tyssson," Zoltar elaborated.

"Who's Tyson?" Mika inquired.

"He'sss the son of the general, I g-grew up with him. He isss the leader of the gang, he ran away from Ouroborosss yearsss ago and isss being hunted by hisss father," he explained, glancing over the boulder for a second.

"Wait, he's the _general's_ son? Doesn't that make him more powerful and junk?" I asked.

"No, it doessn't, but he might have been training all thossse yearsss and became more powerful," he replied.

"Okay, who cares if he's the president's daughter or not, let's just get this shit over. Zoltar, you take care of the civilians, okay? They might be pretty chill with you, so they won't do anymore screaming. Ian, you deal with controlled ones. The rest of us will handle the gang," Shima ordered.

"Um... why am I alone with the-" I began.

"Maybe we should just take care of the Hypnobrai altogether?" Carlos suggested.

"No, I agree with us breaking off. Those civilians are gonna get themselves hurt otherwise," Mika pointed out.

"Okay, everyone's cool with the plan?" Shima inquired.

We all nodded before breaking off.

I ran towards the people robbing a bank, trying to think of a plan without hurting them.

They may be robbing the joint, but they're not in control of themselves. I just need a safe way to contain them.

"Um, hey! Look at me?" I waved my arms at them.

They glanced at me for a fraction of a second before continuing to grab boxes of money.

_Crap... I can't even use my powers against them! I wished I unlock my true potential now... What could I do to stop them? Maybe I could trick them into following me!_

"Hey! I have golden weapons! They're _very_ valuable! Come and get them!" I waved my kunais around, reflecting the sunlight off of them so they couldn't tell it was black.

"Get him!" one of them yelled before all fifty of them started chasing me.

"OH SHIT!" I yelled, turning around and running.

_Fuck, I didn't think of where I could hold them! Where's the fucking jail?_ I looked around town for a place big enough to hold fifty people.

Then, I spotted a place, about fifty yards ahead of me. It looked empty and big enough, I think it was a sports arena or some sort. God, I wish Mack was here for this.

Huh, never thought I'll say that.

"Get the gold!" All of them cheered after this was yelled as I jumped over discarded carts and food stalls, only tripping like three times.

I kept on running, running into a curtain and getting my foot stuck in a watermelon.

"OHMYGOD WHY AM I SO UNLUCKY?" I screamed as I threw one of my kunais into the door of the building, it burst open. "Come and get me!"

I ran straight into the building, only stopping to struggle with my weapon before getting inside.

Once inside, I ran around, locking all the windows and doors, barricading the few I couldn't. I surprised myself with my speed and efficiency after I did this.

"He's trapped!"

I turned, seeing the people all get into the building.

"Feet, don't fail me now," I prayed before jumping and spinning.

Much to my surprised, I managed to do Airjitzu, landing on the piping along the roof. I clung onto it with my fingers, swinging my legs and arms as if I was on monkey bars. Soon, I had got to the one door I left unlocked.

"Sorry, but I gotta go!" I apologized to them before slamming the door shut, smashing the doorknob with my blades. Then, I pushed a large watermelon cart over, blocking the door.

"Hmm... not that bad," I claimed, crossing my arms before looking around for any stranglers.

Then, my watch started beeping.

"'Ello, master of mind speaking?" I joked, seeing Shima on the hologram.

"Shut up and get your ass here! We have a problem," Shima ordered, ducking down before shooting something at someone.

"Why? What happened?"

"No time to explain, just get your stupid ass here!"

(Zoltar's P.O.V)

I finally found all the people who weren't controlled. They were all hiding in various places so they were hard to locate. It also didn't help that I had a Serpentine accent. However, after I little negotiations, the majority of the racist people agreed to follow me to the outskirts of town.

"Thank you for saving us," a little girl, probably barely five, said, looking up to me.

"No, thank you guysss for agreeing to come out here. We'll get that gang out assss soon assss possssible. We apologize for any damage caused," I stated before running back towards the city, "stay hidden!"

I ran down some back alleys, keeping to the shadows just in case Ian didn't manage to get all the controlled people out of harm's way. My only goal now was to help my friends defeat Tyson and his gang, despite the utter fact I'm absolutely petrified of him.

When we were younger, he always bullied me. My father said it was because he was jealous of my powers. Legend claims that the earth master's daughter chose our line over the Hypnobrai, which created a small rivalry between our tribes. My father and the Hypnobrai's general are great friends, but Tyson and I weren't even close.

"Going somewhere, _runt_?"

Those words sent chills down my spine, seeing a figure appear out of the shadows with a devious smirk on his face. I looked down, avoiding his gaze. I prayed he couldn't hear my heart pounding in my chest, but I could hear it clearly as if someone blasted it on a speaker.

"Y-you lossst your accent," I pointed out, trying to sound brave when I clearly wasn't.

"Pfft, you think I'll keep a loser accent like that? I'm not a runt like you, half-breed," Tyson spat at me.

"Why did you run away? You know how upset your family was? They-"

"They don't give a complete fuck about me, and I don't give a shit about them. My father wants peace and prosperity, what a high-horse priss. All the generals are the fucking same," he stated.

"But why form a gang? Do-"

"Oh, I'm fully aware of the effects on the peace treaty, why the bloody hell do you think I'm doing it? The old ways were better, humans _fearing_ us. Look at you now, weak and befriending humans. Disgusting little bastard child."

Then something dawned on me. "How do you know who I am?"

"Tsk, tsk, well, _runt_, an informant of mine told me that you became a ninja. News was the orange ninja was the master of earth and I was like, ain't that bloody familiar? Then your crappy accent, your eye colour, well, that says it all."

"Who's your informant?" I questioned trying to buy myself some time.

"No one you should care about. She's helping us take down the elementals, one, by, one."

"But-"

"Enough stalling, grab him!"

Before I could even move, I felt four arms grab me. Two on my left arm, two on my right. I struggled against their grip, trying to utilize my powers but for some reason, I couldn't.

"Vengestone embed gloves, like them?"

"Let me go!" I kept my eyes down, avoiding their gaze.

"Why don't you say that to my face." He grabbed my chin and forced it upwards, giving me minor whiplash.

I squeezed my eyes shut, gasping out in pain when I felt one of them twist my arms.

"Hm... they said to keep you alive, said _they'll _kill you themselves, but doesn't say anything about hurting you in any way. Maybe your friends need some _extra_ sparring lessons."

I cried out in pain, opening my eyes for a split second before collapsing to the ground after they kicked my legs out from under me.

Unfortunately, in that split second, I saw his red eyes. I started feeling dizzy and lightheaded. My body and brain felt like lead as he started talking, but my mind was slowly shutting off.

The last thing I heard was.

"Do whatever's necessary to defeat them."

(No one's P.O.V.)

Mika dodged a kick to her head, keeping her eyes shut and relying on her hearing. Unfortunately, she wasn't the best listener and ended up tripping Ingrid.

"Why didn't Master Jun teach us how to fight Hypnobrai? A lesson on listening would be proven to be _extremely_ useful right now!" Shima exclaimed, opening her eyes for a second to fire a lightning bolt at two snakes before closing her eyes.

"Where are the others? They should've been done by now!" Carlos questioned, rolling away from an attack and causing an earthquake in that general direction, knocking over Shima.

"I don't know, but he was right about these guys being tough to beat with only two!" Mika replied.

It was minorly embarrassing seeing them fight with their eyes closed, attacking their comrades and innocent plants. The only good thing about the whole predicament was that no civilians were in sight.

"OH SHIT!"

Everyone in the fight stopped, hearing a high-pitch, almost _girlish_ scream from the other side of town, around the general direction Ian went.

"Ugh... what did that idiot do this time?"

"Imagine he lit the city hall on fire," Carlos joked.

"Shut up so we can fight these bastards!" Shima spat at him.

"Oh, you don't need to worry about them. I have a special gift for you elementals," a new voice said.

They all turned towards the noise, their enemies slipping away and running towards their leader.

Tyson walked towards them, smirking.

"What kind of _gift_?" Carlos questioned, suspicion evident in his demeanour.

"Well, I like to introduce you to one of my old friends, but you must know him already. We'll leave so you guys can have a... nice _'chat'_." With that, the Hypnobrai gang disappeared.

"Um... should we open our eyes now?" Mika inquired. She opened her eyes experimentally, just in time to jump away from the earthquake being launched in their directions.

Unfortunately, her friends weren't so lucky, but at least they opened their eyes.

"What the- Zoltar? What the hell?" Shima exclaimed when she saw their comrade send another earthquake to them.

He stared dead ahead, his eyes glowing red. He showed no recognition towards them, acting on Tyson's orders only. It was possible he didn't even realize what he was doing at all.

"He must be under their control!" Carlos guessed, sending an earthquake back to him.

"Really? No shit, Sherlock," Shima remarked, jumping away as Zoltar did Spinjitzu towards them.

"Carlos, can you try to snap him out of it? Get in his head?" Mika questioned, controlling the water from a nearby fountain and firing it at the snake.

"No, I can only read his mind. Ian and I haven't unlocked our true potential anyway," he replied.

"We can't hurt him, he's our friend." Mika froze the water around Zoltar, holding him for a second before he burst free.

"Well, he's gonna hurt _us_ if we don't subdue him somehow." Shima jumped out of his range of attack, calling Ian. She ordered him to get there as soon as possible before ending the call. "Can you guys talk in other people's minds?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I think if both of you talk to him at once, it'll distract him long enough for Master Jun to get here with the flute," Shima explained.

"Ingrid, go call Master Jun and Mack. He's supposed to be resting but he might know where she is right now," Mika ordered.

Ingrid nodded, running off to the side just as Shima jumped back in. Ingrid made the call quickly, explaining to Master Jun the situation and questioning her what time she would return.

"I got the recording, I'm unsure how long it'll take us to get back to the town though."

"We?"

"Hey, she let me drive." Mack popped his head into the hologram before disappearing again.

"Usually I don't get a concussed person to drive me, but Mack's jet is fast enough for us to get there. Just hold out a bit longer."

Ingrid nodded before cutting the video, running back towards the others just as Ian arrived, aiding the others in the fight.

"What did she say?" Carlos questioned, pushing Zoltar back with the wind.

"She said she's on her way, but she doesn't know when," she replied, only Mika hearing her because she was the closest.

"Well, guess we go with Plan B then, Ian, Carlos, GO!" Mika commanded as both boys ceased fighting and focus on entering Zoltar's mind.

_Zoltar! Snap out of it! It's us, you're friends!_ Ian exclaimed once he got in.

_Friends are foes. Friends are foes. Do whatever it takes_, was the response he got, the answer seeming forced, robotic, and very much, unlike their friend.

Ian looked pleadingly to Carlos.

_Zoltar, it's me, Carlos, remember? Your friend? Famous? Remember when we went and watched those crappy movies I made where I was portrayed as a pedophile basically?_ Carlos tried reminding him of past memories, hoping they'll spark something.

Zoltar paused for one moment before continuing his siege of attacks against his friends.

"Do it at the same time you clods!" Shima screamed before shooting lightning at Zoltar.

They nodded to each other, ignoring Shima's insult before entering Zoltar's mind at the same time. They took turns talking but eventually resulted in speaking over each other, saying random things that gave Zoltar a splitting headache in his semi-conscious form.

_Ugh... w-where am I?_ A new voice asked, sounding more like the Zoltar they knew and were friends with.

_Zoltar, snap out of it. Focus on our voices! Ignore the other guy, he's a douchebag,_ Carlos advised urgently.

_My... head... why can't I-_ Zoltar was cut off, the robotic one returning in full force, its voice blaring in Carlos and Ian's heads, causing them to both fall to the ground in pain.

"Carlos! Ian!" Mika cried out in worry before wrapping more water around her friend, freezing it rock solid.

However, help had finally arrived at that moment. Playing, full volume, was the song of the Scarced Flute out of Mack's jet as he landed a block away from them.

Zoltar froze at the noise before collapsing himself.

"Turn it off!" Mika yelled, running over to her unconscious friend, "That hurts _all_ types of Serpentine!"

Mack complied shutting it off but not before taking a USB out of the dashboard. He leaped out of the side and ran over to the others, helping Carlos get up while Ingrid helped Ian.

"Where are the controlled citizens?" Master Jun questioned, walking towards them calmly.

"In the arena over there." Ian pointed to the place before wincing in pain from his headache.

"Well, I want you kids to return to the monastery, I'll deal with the situation." Master Jun took the USB before walking to the arena.

(Back to Zoltar's P.O.V.)

_Uh... what happened?_ I let out a soft groan, feeling as if someone shot electricity at me. Then, I felt a splitting headache in my head. It felt like someone split my head open with a battle axe practically.

"... Zoltar?" I heard someone say, but they felt like miles away.

"Let... try..."

_Zoltar? Are you awake, buddy?_ I heard someone ask me, but the sound resonated in my aching head.

_W-who isss thisss?_

"Yeah... awake..."

More people were talking, but their volumes seemed to rise and fall randomly, cutting out parts of their conversation. However, I did manage to get a few words that sounded like 'conscious', 'headaches', and 'flute'.

I opened my eyes slowly, being blinded by a bright, white light immediately. For a split second, I thought I had died, but then I realized it was some sort of light source.

"Mmh... where... where am I?" I asked, my throating feeling scratchy when I said this.

Figures appeared in my visions, but they were somewhat blurry so it was hard to tell who was who. One of them helped up into a sitting position, leaning me against a pile of pillows or something along those lines.

My vision started to focus then, helping me figure out who was talking.

"Hey, good to have you back on our side." Carlos held an ice pack to his head, puzzling me.

_Did something happen? Did we get attacked? Why don't I remember anything?_

"What's the last thing you remember?" Mika asked softly, her eyes filled with worry and something else I couldn't detect.

"Um..." _What _was_ the last thing I remembered?_ "I-I wasss... helping people somewhere..." I tried recalling more, but then I felt a spike of pain my arms as well, causing me to wince again.

"Yeah, Mika iced your arms because they seemed fractured or something," Ian, who also had an ice pack, elaborated, gesturing towards my arms.

"Anyway, that's all you remember?" Shima questioned, looking completely composed as she usually did.

"Yes..." It scared me I had a memory gap, and judging from their expressions and our injuries, I must've missed something _big_.

"Well, long story short, you were um..." Mika began, looking unsure about going further.

"You were controlled by the Hypnobrai, and attacked them. Then Carlos and Ian tried getting in your head, it worked for a bit before you did something to them that's still giving them headaches," Mack continued for her, crossing his arms.

Um... what? No, it's impossible. I would never- would I?

"Hey, it's okay, none of us are that seriously hurt, just some bruises. You must've forgotten about your weapon so you didn't use it. None of us our externally bleeding anyway," Mika reassured me, probably judging from the panic look that crossed my face.

It wasn't panic towards hurting my friends- well, of course, I was upset about that. However, I was terrified because one of my worst nightmares came true. Getting hypnotize and being controlled by the Hypnobrai, my longest-standing fear.

I felt like a piece of me was damaged at that moment. I attacked my friends, which I would never _rationally_ do unless I'm sparring, and I was controlled by the one group of snakes that had struck fear into my heart since my childhood.

"Training is cancelled for this week for all of you to recover. This is your first _real_ fight against a dangerous group of criminals, and it won't be your last.

"Now, everyone, give Zoltar some rest. He needs it. He will remain in here until he fully recovers while the rest of you head back to your room.

"I want all the boys to be resting, _all_ of you were injured in some way in the past couple of days resulting in possible head trauma, I'll be getting a professional to come to check you out in the coming days. I don't want to put you guys back to if it can permanently damage your bodies in any way." Master Jun led the others out of the room, almost all of them leaving except one.

Ingrid sat down on the bed beside me, looking at me oddly, which seemed so unlike her at that moment.

"W-what?"

"Are you okay?" she questioned me.

"Physssically, no," I replied as I ignored the dull throbbing on the back of my neck.

"Emotionally?"

I hesitated to respond, but I had a feeling Ingrid would understand and not tell anyone.

I told her everything, from Tyson bullying me and my fears of getting controlled by the Hypnobrai. I expressed how I felt about being used, how much it _scared_ me not remembering what happened and falling victim to Tyson once more.

After I told her everything, I realized I was crying. I couldn't even look at her as the tears streamed down my face.

More to my surprise she sat on the bed with me and hugged me. I hugged her back, feeling a sense of warmth in my body that I haven't felt since... ever.

(Shima's P.O.V.)

Mika and I were playing cards when Ingrid came in.

"Where were you?" Mika questioned, eyes still on the card.

"I was checking in on Zoltar..." she replied, grabbing something from her bag before running off again.

We turned back to each other before continuing to play.

"You okay with her hanging out with Zoltar?" I questioned, picking up a new card.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I?"

I raised my eyebrow. "Well, I thought you liked him or something."

She rolled her eyes. "Well, I guess he is cute, but our age difference is kinda significant. I guess I did like him before, but I think I consider him a brother more than anything now," she elaborated, "queen?"

"Go," I replied.

She picked up a card, adding it to her other hand. "What about you? Any of the boys catch your eye? Ian?"

"Ew, no, too big of a nerd."

"Mack?"

"Um, too jocky and self-absorbed."

"Pfft, says you."

"Shut up."

"Zoltar?"

"Three-year age gap and he's not my type."

"What about," she began, smirking, "Carlos?"

I pushed the heat I felt rise into my cheeks away, keeping a poker face. "What about him?"

"C'mon, I can tell you like him," she teased.

"With what evidence?" I kept my expression neutral despite the topic.

I never had crushes or any attraction to anyone before. It never crossed my mind that I wanted a male or significant other to complete me because I was fine with how I was already.

Not every person needs another person to make them happy or successful, tons of people are remarkably successful and they're single.

"Well, you heard that people's pupils dilate when looking at something they like?"

I snorted. "How can you even see my pupils?"

She looked panicked for a moment before regaining her composure. "Um... good eyesight?"

"No human can possibly see that."

"I just have _really_ good eyesight, m'kay?"

I rolled my eyes. "Let's focus on the game, shall we? 5?"

"Here," she stated, handing me three cards.

We continued playing until Master Jun called us for dinner, which felt shorter than I realized.

_Have we been playing for three hours?_ I looked at the clock in mild alarm. _How didn't I notice that? I'm usually quite attentive_.

"Who's cooking tonight?" Mika asked Master Jun.

"Well, Zoltar was, but he's resting in the infirmary still. Next would've been the other boys, but I don't trust them since they have possible head trauma," Master Jun answered.

"How can Zoltar screaming in their heads cause head trauma?" I questioned skeptically.

"Well, elemental powers and science don't exactly go hand and hand. It is all guessing and speculation," she replied before beckoning for Ingrid, who was shoving something into her pocket.

"Y-yes?" She looked scared for some reason, shrinking further back in her hoodie, which I noticed she did a lot of.

"Do you mind making dinner?"

"Sure... it's fine..." She turned and walked towards the kitchen.

The rest of us filed into the dining room where the boys seemed to be arguing about something tedious and stupid, per usual. Honestly, these boys are such idiots.

Actually, everyone on this team is an idiot at times. Ugh, they'll be nowhere without me.

"I just think it'll be better if _I_ got your jet! Like, you can teleport for Pete's sake!" Ian exclaimed, presumably talking to Mack.

"Not my fault you got a lame-ass ride, and it's _my_ jet, okay? You can keep your scooter," he retorted.

"Guys, relax, does it really matter what your ride is?" Carlos questioned, trying to get in between the two of them.

"Hmmph, says _you_, you just need to teleport! Not to mention you could probably make one call and then a limo or a helicopter will appear!" Ian blurted, slamming his fist against the table.

"Why the hell do you keep on bringing up the fact I was an actor? Does it _fucking_ matter? Is it relevant at all?" Carlos questioned, pushing himself into a standing position.

"You just think you're all high and mighty, being born rich and-"

"BOYS!" Master Jun yelled, silencing the boys immediately, "Sit down now!"

Carlos sat back down before glaring at Ian, something I haven't ever seen him do genuinely. He was generally calm and collected so I never really seen him angry.

"I will not take this type of nonsense for you boys! I understand that you guys may have your differences, but you still must learn to cooperate. I can't believe I'm still saying this," she stated, whispering the last part before signalling for us girls to take a seat.

(Carlos' P.O.V.)

Tensions still remained high after dinner, and for even weeks later. Passed New Years as well, which came up quicker than we expected.

New Years wasn't a big event for most people, so we usually overlook it. I found that kind of odd in some cases. Wouldn't transitioning into a new year be a spectacle or something?

It makes me realize then how long ago it was when I accepted Master Jun's offer and left my life of fame. Maybe a month, maybe even more, I haven't really been checking. It still amazes me every day not waking up to my mother's constant banter about our daily activities. Then, going through countless public events and pretending to enjoy it all.

Well, being a ninja isn't all that glamorous either, we do get a lot of publicity. However, it's on my _own_ terms instead of my mother's. I chose this life, I chose to leave all my fame, fortune, and overbearing mother.

Wow, that got _deep_ fast. I should really stop getting sidetracked while training.

"Catch!" Mika threw a ball up at me.

Currently, I was balancing on a wooden pole while Mika threw items at me to catch and throw into a bucket behind me. The top of the pole was incredibly narrow so I could just barely fit my own foot on it.

While I did this, the others were off doing their own activities. Ian and Ingrid were sparring, Mack and Shima were running through the course, and Zoltar was doing one-on-one training with Master Jun.

I caught the ball, pivoting and throwing it into the bucket. I turned again to catch another ball, repeating my previous actions.

It went like this for a while before Master Jun ordered us to switch. I did Airjitzu to soften my landing while Mika did the opposite and went up.

"I'm surprised neither of us fell off yet," I remarked, tossing a ball up at her.

"I'm glad we didn't, I did enough falling at the factory," she responded, tossing the ball into the bucket.

I raised my eyebrow, tossing another ball up. "What?"

"I tried climbing up the crates and fell." She caught the ball and dropped it in the bucket.

"Pfft-" I threw up another ball. "Why were you even climbing up the crates?"

"I don't know, just wanted to see over them." She shrugged, catching and throwing the ball again.

Master Jun came out of the monastery, which was where she was training Zoltar, and ordered all of us to switch activities but stay in the same group. Mika and I went to the course, Mack and Shima went to sparring, then Ian and Ingrid took our pole.

"So, no powers, eh?" I questioned.

"We could barely make it through this by ourselves, how are we supposed to do this with only one partner?" she asked, retying her hair.

"I don't know, lack of teamwork, I guess?"

She laughed. "C'mon, let's stop stalling and start." She pushed the start button before diving straight in, I followed after.

We dodged, jumped, and climbed through each obstacle, aiding each other along the way. Of course, we didn't get through the course the first time, both of us getting stuck underneath the collapsing wall.

As we trained, my eyes wandered over to Shima sparring against Mack. I watched her dodge, kick, and punch, her every move precise and calculated. It amazed me how level-headed she was in fights. However, I still find it annoying how cold and mean she is to everyone.

I may like her, but not for her negative qualities. Maybe I just like her for how she looks, which is shallow in my opinion.

I didn't want to be shallow like my mom and ex were, I want to like someone despite their flaws. Maybe that's why I don't completely like Shima. Maybe I'm just as shallow as my mother was. She raised me to be like this, teachers and peers told me to be like this.

My mother was a famous actress, and she still is. Her legacy followed me while I attended MOSPA, otherwise known as Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts. Everywhere I went, teachers and my fellow students expected me to live up to her legacy, and I did. I followed the path she chose for me, acted in all the movies she wanted me in, dated the girls she recommended, everything I did she wanted me to do.

What about my father? Well, I never met him. My mother called him a psychopath, a gold-digger, delusional, but that didn't make sense why she slept with him. It didn't make sense why she came back to him before I was born. None of it fit together, but I had no other source of information.

All the tabloid said was my mother ran away from the fame and loved a 'commoner', dropping her ratings. Then she left but came back when she was three months pregnant. Once I was born, my father and mother were together. However, after I turned three, she took me away. The public thinks it's because my father was 'an abusive asshole', but there could be numerous reasons.

One thing I was sure of was that my mother truly loved him once. How do I know? She took his last name, but that could because it sounded better than hers, which was originally Orcha.

"Watch out- never mind," I called out to Mika just as she slipped on some oil.

"Ugh... we're never gonna make it through the course," she groaned, lying on her back.

"Well, not with that attitude." I offered my hand, which she took. I pulled her up easily, before seeing Mack watching us.

"Switch!" Master Jun yelled.

We headed towards the sparring area just as Mack walked up to me, glaring.

"What was that?" he questioned.

"What was what?"

"Holding hands with Mika?" He looked ready to fight me when he said this, clenching and unclenching his fist.

"I was helping her up, chill." I walked around him.

"Not, what I saw," he spat, "how would you feel if I was touchy-feely with Shima?"

"I don't like either of them that way."

"Pfft, sure, say whatever you want." He rolled his eyes before walking off.

I continued walking over to the sparring spot, Mika being there already and stretching.

"What was up with Mack?" she inquired, adjusting her yoroi.

"Nothing, just being paranoid as usual," I replied.

She nodded, before bringing out her weapons. I copied her before we began sparring.

(Keyna's P.O.V.)

I injected the needle into my arm, gasping out in pain before I withdrew it, disposing of it into the special container I got from the drugstore. I cleaned up the needle mark before hiding my stuff.

I fell back on my bed, the morphine slowly starting to kick in as the pain in my arms and legs lessened.

Master and Akuma were both mad when I couldn't stall the girls long enough in the mall. Then, it got worse when Tyson left the ninjas to fend for themselves after hypnotizing one of them.

He was _supposed_ to wait for us before running, but his stupid excuse was that he had other jobs to do by orders of someone else. Naturally, this made Master furious enough to send me after their gang and 'deal' with them. Unfortunately, I was outnumbered and knocked unconscious.

Once Akuma got my body back here, Master unleashed his anger against me for messing up the fight and passing out. Akuma, on the other hand, was much more sympathetic towards me.

Now, about three weeks later or something, he got angry _again_ when I couldn't track down the gang. Even Akuma tried tracking them, but couldn't trace them either. Therefore, we both got punished.

I started feeling lightheaded then, so I closed my eyes as my breathing slowed.

_(Dreams)_

_ I was walking in an alleyway, alone. It was dark and I was surprised I could navigate so well. I weaved in and out of the trashcans, keeping my head down as I searched for something, but I don't know what._

_ "Hey, Keyna, hear me?" a voice asked, causing me to look around in alarm._

_ I didn't see anyone else in the alley, so I experimentally kicked a garbage bag, which wiggled and a rat scurried out of it._

_ "Earpiece, idiot," a new voice said, confusing me._

_ I touched my ear, but then I realized I was wearing a hood on something. _

_ I looked down, discovering I was wearing a faded, blue, jean jacket with black leggings and knee-high boots. I had a wristwatch, which was an ombre grey colour with black accents. I felt something in my pocket as well, possibly a concealed weapon judging from the weight._

_ "Um... I can hear you?" I responded, still puzzled by who these two were._

_ For some reason, I don't know why, but my body wouldn't _physically_ ask them who they were. I imagined saying it, but it was as if I had no control over my voice._

_ "Good, the dealer's on the next block over. Ask for the order, see what he does, then invite him for a drink at the next bar. You're fake is in you're right boot, under the sleeve," the first guy said to me._

_ "Okay..." I followed their instructions, finding the dealer quite easily._

_ "Keyna, haven't seen you in a while, found a new provider?" the person asked, puffing out smoke from their cigarette._

_ "Just didn't need to because of Miss Emma you gave me last time," I answered smoothly._

_ "Ah, I did give you twenty-four crates of that beaut." He nodded his head. "So what brings you back to the eastside? How'd you know I wasn't at the ridge?"_

_ "I heard you got busted near there, you needed-" _

_ Before I could continue, I heard loud yelling and I felt myself shaking_.

_(Dream over)_

"Get up," Akuma ordered.

I slowly sat up, blinking the stars out of my vision before looking at him.

"Master says you should meet up with those girls again. As well, your phone was ringing nonstop from those girls too." He held up my unlocked phone, showing five miss calls from Mika and Ingrid.

"Um... okay, I'll get changed and head out." I pushed myself out of the bed, ignoring the fact the room was swaying back and forth.

He looked mildly surprised before leaving the room, muttering something I couldn't quite hear in time.

I checked the time, seeing I've been asleep for about four hours. _It should start wearing off now,_ I said to myself before slipping on a sweater and jeans, snatching the keys to my motorcycle along the way.

Once I responded to the ninjas' message, saying we should meet up in Sapporo like Ingrid suggested last time we hung out, I slipped onto my ride before turning it on.

I rode towards the Sapporo district, remembering to stop by a ridge along the way to meet up with Mx. Dealer. They said they'll be in the area conducting business for a few weeks last time I saw them, so I could just drop by and receive the last of my pain meds.

Over the past couple of weeks, I've managed to collect almost all of my morphine, and I managed to pay the bulk of it.

They previously stole a special pouch that could fit an almost _infinite_ amount of stuff inside, so I bought it off of them for a reasonable price. Now, I could fit all the painkillers I wanted in a small, inconspicuous bag.

It didn't take me long to find my dealer once again. They were just smoking near the ridge, as per usual.

"Money?"

I handed him the wad of cash I nicked from some kids at the party last year.

"Miss Emma?"

They headed me another pouch, which I quickly emptied into mine that I had in my pocket. It was easier said than done, so they had to keep watch as I did this.

"Thanks," I whispered before walking off calmly.

"Last I'll see of you for a while?" they guessed, stuffing their hands in their pockets.

"Yep, probably," I agreed, stopping.

"Well, hopefully, you'll live to then." They turned on their heels, throwing their cigarette into the water before walking off in the opposite direction.


	7. Another's Note (sorry)

Hey guys, sorry about this but, due to _extreme_ lack of views, I'm considering dropping the updates from once a week to only once a month. I'm sorry if this upsets any of you, but it seems (to me) that no one's actually reading this story. I don't want to rush a chapter in every week if no one's reading it.

If you are reading this story, please leave a review saying you are, or anything really. If I get enough people, I'll continue to post every week.

Creator2005, signing off.


End file.
